You Are Not Your Work

Last week, at the end of a morning meditation, these words came: You are not your work.

It made me think about the day Brooke Warner, my writing coach, said, “You’re a very talented memoirist.” Her words shocked me. I didn’t believe her. I told myself she’d said this to be nice or to comfort me. But I hadn’t needed comfort that day, nor was Brooke the false, say-something-that-isn’t-true-to-stroke-a-person’s-ego type. So I decided to take in her remark. Welcome it. Make it my own.

I wrote her comment on a scrap of paper, switching it from second to first person: “I am a very talented memoirist.” This statement made me cringe, but I knew from previous experience with affirmation work that the more false a statement feels, the greater the opportunity for growth.

Maybe I am a very talented memoirist, I thought.  That’s not so far-fetched. I’ve been practicing my craft for three decades. Perhaps I’ve learned something. Maybe I’m developing a modicum of mastery. I typed the statement into my computer, selected “Apple Chancery,” a script font, printed it, and taped it to the wall near my meditation cushion.

The next day when I read the affirmation it disturbed me. I wasn’t sure why. At first I thought it was because I was unable to claim this truth. But over the next few days, I realized it wasn’t the grandeur of these words, but the smallness of them that irked me. You are so much more than that, my Soul whispered.

So I revised my affirmation. It now reads: I am a divine, light-filled being, a gifted and prolific memoirist, poet, author, blogger, a loving, devoted daughter, wife, mother, friend, a teacher, coach, and healer, lover of nature, and more. This feels better—wider and more generous. It gives me space.

I realize that I am more than these roles I list, which are containers, but each of them provide my Spirit with opportunities to serve and share my gifts in the world. Gifts want and need to be shared.

As long as I remain aware that I am not my work, I can use it as a vehicle for self-expression and loving service.