DON'T MAKE YOURSELF SMALL

DON'T MAKE YOURSELF SMALL
​
"I'll try to make myself as small as possible,"
she said as she pulled her arms close to her body and settled into the middle seat between me and the man sleeping by the window.
 
When I fly, I have learned to take the aisle seat when I can. It allows me to exit quickly when the plane lands and to have one side free, giving the perception of more space. At times I enjoy the window seat, but I really hate the dreaded middle seat.
 
When my new seat mate made her comment,  I laughed and responded with some fluffy chit chat about how the middle seat is a tuff one to sit in.
 
The plane took off.
Ear phones on.
Pretzels delivered. 
 
The comment floated in my head…
  I'll try to make myself as small as possible.
 
I thought about how many times I had done that in life...made myself small to allow room for others to have the space they need, to be comfortable, to spread their wings, to shine in the spotlight...even if it was at the expense of my own comfort.
 
An honorable thing to do, right?
 
Well, yes, it can be at the right moment, for the right reason. The problem is, it can become a habit. 
 
If you constantly pull back in the shadow of others you are not allowing your soul to shine. The beauty of YOU is hidden. The gifts you were brought here to share will never be known.
I believe we are here to stretch our souls. To learn. To teach. To love. 
We cannot do this with our arms pulled in forcing our bodies to contort into a small version of our real self.
 
Stand tall. 
Put those arms up.
Speak your message.
Let your soul out to shine in the spotlight of life.
Only then will you gift the world with the real you.
The YOU you were sent here to be.
The YOU you were sent to share.
Only then will the real YOU be loved.
               ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
Pennie's Life Lesson:
           "Don't make yourself small
         in order to make someone else                                                seem big."
               ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ​

---

Pennie Heart to Heart
DON'T MAKE YOURSELF SMALL

YOUR TURN...         
My intent in sharing this with you is to encourage you to be brave enough to stand in your own space.  Spread out!  Own the gifts you are here to share! 
Share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below.  And please feel free to email me  at:
                [email protected]. 
                          Thank you!  
                ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
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         This was written and produced by Pennie Hunt.
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