There's an essay* (with journal prompts to use if you'd like), a recording of the essay (coz sometimes it's more fun to listen) and, at the very bottom, I'll point you to an incredibly encouraging, Square-Peg-celebrating, video I saw the other day.
You Are a Snowflake, Right?
Hi, Snowflake. You are a snowflake, right?
We all are! I mean, we're all unique, beautiful, one-of-a-kind - just like snowflakes.
Of course, all of us gorgeous, individual snowflakes are also part of our culture, our society - our SNOW.
And there are a lot of wonderful things about SNOW. Joining with other snowflakes can be fun (think snow forts, snow fights, snow angels and snowmen).
But...
in our culture most of the emphasis is on the SNOW, way less on our uniqueness - our individual snowflake beauty.
We can even lose our snowflake-ness to the SNOW.
Well, as I said above - we all are snowflakes (unique and beautiful), but we're not always comfortable with that.
Sometimes even thinking about our snowflake qualities (our differences, our beauty) makes us squirm - we can feel more like a flake than a snowflake.
But knowing our differences - and living them is what makes us authentic. And being authentic leads to making a difference in the world as we share our unique offerings!
So, how do we emphasise what makes us different - when we're not always comfortable with our uniqueness (our snowflake-ness)?
It starts with awareness, mindfulness.
We can allow ourselves to get curious about the times when we feel or think differently than SNOW (than whatever is status quo at the time).
Many of us really enjoy connection, so we intuitively look for ways that we're like others - ways we agree.
Purposely looking for how we think and feel differently can seem very odd, but continued mindfulness and curious reflection about our differences (our uniqueness) will grow into being more comfortable with our snowflake-ness...
and that will grow into our snowflake beauty being emphasized naturally.
~ ~ ~
Here are some journal prompts to use for reflecting on your snowflake qualities. They can be helpful even if you're already pretty darn comfy with your uniqueness:
I suggest that, as you begin to think about your uniqueness, you become aware of your feelings, thoughts and body experiences - these can be pointers to further reflection.
- What makes you unique?
- Which area(s) of your uniqueness are embarrassing or uncomfortable for you; which are you proud of?
- How do you nurture your uniqueness?
- How do you share your uniqueness with the world?
- What gets in the way of sharing more of your uniqueness?
~ ~ ~
Here's the recorded version of this post (which you can download to listen to later):
~ ~ ~
Here's a link to the video I promised (above) to point to -> it's a video of Lynn Serafinn in Lissa Bole's extraordinary 30 days, 30 dares project and it's called I dare you to NOT FIT.
Lynn nails the Square-Peg thing, and I was leaping up and down by the time she (wrapped in self-acceptance & love) shouted: "Hallelujah, I don't fit!" It was a gentle shout, but it resounded in my heart like something hollered from the rooftops!!
*The snowflake essay was first published, just about a year ago, in the free version of C.A. Kobu's A Year With Myself (a year-long self-love, reflection and journaling program).
