With 28 years of life experience and 10 of those spent pursuing post secondary education, I’ve heard and read countless idioms and quips, rules by which to live my life. Much of what I’ve learned has helped to shape me , but no words more so than those spoken by my mother.
Passed down by her own mother, the repeated mantra ” You’re no better than anyone else in this world, but remember they are no better than you.” captures the essence of who I want to be. The reminder that there is “different” not “better”. That being unique is something to be celebrated, in ourselves, and in others. After listening to the woes of my day, my mother would regal with me stories of her standing up to bullies, not on behalf of herself, but for others not able to. My throat would swell with tears because as much as I wished I could say I did the same , I wasn’t strong enough.
I’ve been looked down by people but I’ve also looked down on others. I can’t change the past but as I move forward I keep her words in my mind and hope someday soon to truly embody them.
The Zuf Truth 