Hello friends,
Last night, I dreamt I was in a sort of Planet of the Apes world. These highly intelligent apes appeared out of nowhere and started kicking out all the humans. They kept a few, though, and I was one. But when they saw my cane, they took it from me and threw it down a deep well. The apes told me my cane was a sign of weakness and I needed to be strong and learn to get by without it.
In my dream, my leg was worse off than in real life. Without my cane, I practically had to crawl to get around. The apes kept yelling at me and pushing me to be tougher. Eventually, I fought back and told them that strength isn't always visible in obvious ways. My strength came from knowing when I needed help and not shying away from it out of fear.
Lately, I've been working on acknowledging my strengths where they are instead of trying to force myself into a shape I'm no longer capable of. I can't run a marathon or kick ass in a gym. What I can do is show the world that being crippled is nothing to be ashamed of. Needing a walking aid does not make me weak. My power comes in the form of my sheer will to keep going.
I'll keep the newsletter short this week. But I'll leave you with an invitation: Think about where your strength comes from and what it means to be strong. Then go out into the world and kick some ass.
Until next week, Shabbat shalom,
Yardena