THE PENCIL & how we grow without losing ourselves
There is an old story that, before placing a pencil into its box, the pencil maker gave it five reminders. I also see it as a story about how we grow without losing ourselves.
1) Let the right hand hold you
A pencil, no matter how good it is, cannot write much lying alone on a table.
We also sometimes need a teacher, a teammate, a friend. Someone who can see what we cannot yet see.
Letting someone hold the pencil does not mean giving them the authorship of our life. We stay open enough to learn and grounded enough to keep our core.
2) Do not fear being sharpened
There are seasons that cut: a failure, a rejection, a loss, a beginning we did not ask for.
Pain does not automatically make us better.
What matters more is: What did I see because of it? Where did I become clearer, stronger, or more honest?
We do not need to worship pain. We also do not need to let it pass through us without meaning.
3) Protect the core
The outside may be beautiful.
The title may be impressive.
The achievements may make people notice us.
The part that actually writes our life is still inside:
our values,
our character,
our real capability,
our health,
the way we treat people when no one is watching.
Our core question: If the titles, recognition, and appearance disappeared, what in me would still remain?
4) When you write something wrong, revise it.
One of the most beautiful things about a pencil is that it allows correction.
Growing older does not mean becoming someone who no longer makes mistakes.
Maybe maturity is simply becoming more able to say:
I was wrong here.
I understand more now.
I will do this differently.
The eraser does not reduce the value of the pencil.
The ability to revise is part of the writing.
5) Do not stay so untouched that you never really write anything.
A pencil becomes shorter as it is used.
And at the same time, the page becomes fuller.
While writing 1000 Souls in Me, I keep seeing that there are many “pencil parts” within us too.
The one who can learn.
The one who has survived being sharpened.
The one who protects the core.
The one who can repair.
The one who wants to leave something meaningful behind.
No single part needs to do everything. They can all work together.
…
PRACTICE CORNER
If your life were a pencil, what do you need most right now?
To be supported?
To be sharpened?
To return to your core?
To revise something?
Or simply… to keep writing?
Love and gratitude from Jen
#1000SoulsInMe #SelfLeadership #LifePractice #PersonalGrowth #ManySelvesOneLife #JenVuHuong
