A Story For You on New Year’s Eve

It’s that beautiful week of reflection before the New Year begins. Lots of us (me included!) are setting goals for the New Year. But this year I’m doing it a little differently.

I’m not just remembering what I want, I’m remembering who I AM.

If you haven’t thought much about how wonderful you are lately, here’s a story for you:

The Great Spirit was having trouble keeping everything in Life connected. As he was pondering what to do, one of his smallest creatures, a silkworm, inched over and quietly said, “O Great Spirit, I think I can help.” The Great Spirit, knowing all creatures were created with wisdom and gifts, looked at the worm and asked “How can you help?” And the little worm, without a word, started to weave beautiful silk threads, spinning silk from its guts, connecting everything in existence.

When it was done, the Great Spirit shined its light all over the web of existence, and all of the connecting threads were briefly visible. Knowing these threads of connection would allow for endless acts of kindness and caring between the creatures, the Great Spirit went to the little worm and said “Thank you little worm, you have saved us. Not by being bold or great, but by being true to your own nature, by inching and squirming and spinning your golden thread from your very guts. To thank you, I will let you live forever. “

Well, the little worm was grateful but surprised and actually a little frightened. The Great Spirit saw this and asked “Don’t you want to live forever?” And the humble little worm said, “Great Spirit, I fear living forever if I can’t grow.”

The Great Spirit smiled at the wisdom still coming from one of the smallest creatures, and said “Very well little worm, I will give you the ability to spin this precious thread of yours around yourself. When you’ve stilled your urge to inch and squirm away, when you’ve spun your little golden thread around yourself and you’re still for a long enough time, I will let you feel the lightness of being that only I know.”

This was how the Great Spirit allowed the silkworm to spin the very first cocoon, and after a time of quietude, it became the very first butterfly. *

I love lots of things about this story, but especially this message:

You are enough.

The tiny, homely silkworm created a wonder, just by doing what it was able to do. It was all a matter of being willing to offer it up.

Who you are, just as you are, with, without, before or after cancer, is a blessing beyond measure.

What’s something wonderful about yourself that you haven’t acknowledged for a while? What would you love to offer up more of in 2015? Leave a comment below and let me know!

* I learned this creation story via the book Holding Nothing Back by Mark Nepo.

Keywords: Dr. Shani Fox, life after cancer, self-esteem after cancer, growth after cancer, reach for your dreams, thriving after cancer, wellness after cancer