Hello Friends,
How are y’all doing today? I hope you guys had a good weekend. Mine was long since we had Monday off and surprisingly I was able to get a few things on my checklist done. So one of my goals for this year is to be more intentional with my time. To not just aimlessly scroll through social media to pass by time but to grow in all aspects of my life. Whether its; Spiritual, Financial, Physical/ Health, Mental, Emotional, Habits, and Hobbies. I just have this overwhelming sense of gratitude towards God for giving me the strength and breath to live this life I’m living. We only get one life guys and I’m at the point where I truly want to live my best life, where not only am I getting the best from it but giving my best to it. I want to be able to stand in front of God and say I did the best with what you gave me. I don’t want to live a life full of regrets, I want to live one where even if I tried and failed I can at least say I tried. Where I can experience things I’ve never experienced before. Hear languages I’ve never heard, see places I’ve never seen, love as much as I can love, and learn from pain and disappointment.
I didn’t intend to write as much for my first paragraph but I guess you can say that I’m feeling excited about the possibilities and opportunities this new year may bring. So y’all already know get comfortable, grab a snack, and let’s chat for a bit.
The topic for today’s blog came from a conversation I had with my mom and friend (more like sister). We have started to meet every week to discuss all things related to life and Jesus. I can’t remember what exactly brought this to my mind but as we spoke I remembered a quote I read;
“The same boiling water that softens the potato, hardens the egg. It’s what you’re made of. Not the circumstances.”- Unknown
There’s a few points I want to talk about with this quote;
- We are all not the same
- We all have different Outcomes
- We all have a boiling point
As much as I want to be able to relate to all of you I can’t. I can only speak about my life, my memories, my past, my hopes, my dreams. What keeps me up at night may not keep you up. What hurts my feelings may not hurt yours. My disappointments may not be yours, my fears and worries can be completely different from what scares or worries you. I may have not gone through what you have, or have overcome what you have. Some of you may be sweet, others may be blunt, some understanding, others judgemental, some may be forgiving, and others vengeful. I strongly believe that what we go through in life shapes our views, opinions, perspectives, and lifestyle.
Something I truly believe in is that we are all dealt with cards, some good, some okay, and some awful but it is up to us on how we want to play them. I have met many different characters in my life; family, friends, coworkers, and acquaintances. Many different personalities have me wondering how they can be so positive after experiencing the worst. Some who make me wonder why can’t they just see that there is good in life, and some who I wish I can push to their full potential.
Where has life brought you? How has life shaped you? Have you chosen to accept what it’s dealt to you or are you pushing the walls of your comfort zone? Before we can answer these questions there’s one question I want us all to think about. Am I an egg or am I a potato? Do I need to harden or do I need to soften? You may be wondering where I am going with all of this and I’ll tell ya.
In my 30 years of life I can say I’m both, there are moments in my life where I’m too hard like the potato and too soft like the egg. In the moments where I’m like the potato I can be too “hard,” guarded, and reserved. I didn’t realize this till much later in my life but with my resting face I can come across as angry or cold all the while I could be thinking of coffee or needing a nap. Now an interesting thing about Potatoes is that they grow in the dirt and in a dark place. If I ask if many can relate to a potato I’m sure some will say that they know what it feels like to grow up in the dirt and dark. Most of the people who I’ve talked to have grown up or have come from families who were “dirt poor” where their experiences were not filled with sunshine and rainbows. Instead it was filled with darkness and troubles. With not seeing the good in life but always getting the worst. I may not know what you have gone through, or have experienced a third of what you had to survive through but I understand that it can be very easy to view this world as unfair and brutal. Where you wish to experience the sweetness of life but all you have is a bitter taste of it.
I can also say I relate to the egg where on the outside it appears strong but very fragile on the inside. That sentence alone proves to me that I am growing because 2 years ago I would’ve never wanted anyone to think of me as fragile but I have to be honest with myself. The same way I can be as strong and hard as a potato is the same way I can be fragile and soft like an egg. Similar to where the potato grows, the egg grows inside of a dark place as well. The difference is that it comes from a place of warmth and life.
Something that I find interesting as well is the retrieval process of these two things. For a potato you have to dig deep and pull from the roots while the egg is used to an environment of being coddled and protected where to retrieve it you have to be gentle. These two things experience different growth processes and each are handled differently. The same way we all have seen people who were born from darkness rise to be their best selves and people who were born from warmth and having all they can need and choose darkness. I have also seen those born from darkness choose darkness and those who were born from a good family and chose to be good people.
That leads me to my last point, our boiling point. There comes a time in life where we all reach a boiling point and for all of us it gives us a different outcome, as you boil you may either soften like a potato or harden like an egg. For many of us this boiling point is needed because you may be so hard on yourself and others that life needs you to soften you up a bit or you’re too soft and life needs to make you tougher. Either you’re too proud and you need to be humbled or too sensitive and need to become stronger. At the end of the day life may play a big role on who you are as a person but you have a say on whether you will let it mold you as a person and your outlook. At the end of the day you have a say whether your boiling point is your breaking point or what makes you better. You can determine whether you will crack under pressure or thrive in your circumstances.
You can’t choose where you’re born from, what family you were given, what life throws your way but you can choose the outcome. You can choose the path you want to follow and the choices you make. I know life probably hasn’t been kind to you but you deserve to be loved and love, you deserve happiness, joy, peace. You deserve to see your dreams and goals become a reality. Stop thinking you’re out of reach and start thinking that you are within grasp of what you want. Do not let what life has done dictate what you’re worth or capable of because darlin the sky’s the limit.
I’ll leave y’all with this quote;
“Sometimes you get what you want. Other times, you get a lesson in patience, timing, alignment, empathy, compassion, faith, perseverance, resilience, humility, trust, meaning, awareness, resistance, purpose, clarity, grief, beauty and life. Either way, you win.” – Brianna Wiest
Until our next unpacking, have a great day my lovelies!
Love Always,
Janny Mari
One Day at A Time with Janny Mari 