We have final exams, papers, and projects.
We have annual reports, assessments, and grading.
We have so much to do, and it may all seem so urgent.
Hopefully, we remember to breathe. Hopefully, we remember to have compassion for ourselves and for others. The chaos that some experience during this time of year can be overwhelming, but we must remember to do our very best and to love ourselves through it all.
One of my spiritual teachers, the late Ram Dass, once said, “Our whole spiritual transformation brings us to the point where we realize that in our own being, we are enough.” How often we forget this truth. We miss a deadline for our office, or we do not perform as well as we thought we should have on an assignment, and we feel absolutely destroyed. We must remember, however, that we are human. We must remember, however, that our self-worth is not tied to our failures. We are so much more.
This past weekend, I was returning home after running errands, and I was overtaken by the beauty of trees on the way to my subdivision. I began to see the Divine’s presence in each trunk and then in each leaf. Soon, I saw divinity everywhere. I had a wonderful moment of clarity—the Divine pulses through all things, and that means that the Divine is in us even when we fail. Nothing changes the Creator’s love for us, and failure does not change the fact that we are greatly loved by God.
As you read these words, dear reader, I pray that you succeed in all of your end-of-the-year endeavors. And, I want you to know that you are worthy of all things good each and every day, no matter what. I am so grateful for your presence. I am so grateful that you are connected to our beloved university. Remember that you are enough just as you are in this very moment.