Know Thyself

My little girl likes pink--pink clothes, pink crayons, pink bowls for her breakfast. Pink is present in every room of our house. Pink, for us, is simply a part of life. And it is a beautiful part of life.

Sometimes I get frustrated when she won't eat out of a bowl because it is not pink. And sometimes I get impatient when she complains that her clothes don't match because they are not all pink. But one thing I have learned from this persistent little girl is the value of knowing who you are and what you like.

“How shall we learn to know ourselves?” asked the German writer Goethe. “By reflection? Never; but only through action. Strive to do thy duty; then shalt thou know what is in thee.”

This week our girls have both been sick. Yesterday was the first day we did not go to the doctor's office. I have had more to do than usual, or at least that is how it feels, and I am not getting any of it done. Instead I find myself once again learning from these little people, whose care God has entrusted to me.

Bruce D. Porter has said, "It is not only in quiet hours of meditation that we discover ourselves, but also in hours of wearying toil, in service without reward, in smiles that hurt, in hungering, thirsting, striving, and seeking."

I can still hear my mother's voice in my head as she would repeat the words: "Your Father in Heaven knows you. He loves you. He has a plan for you."

Part of knowing myself is knowing this. I am a daughter of God; my beautiful, pink-wrapped daughters are also part of His family; and my life is part of a greater plan. That means I have divine heritage and am surrounded by others who have the same incredible potential.

I may not know what my favorite color is from day to day, but I know myself enough to know that I want to live up to this potential. In the Sermon on the Mount the Savior of the world taught, "Be ye therefore perfect." (Matt 5:48). Of this command, Bruce D. Porter concludes: "To reach that ideal, we must know ourselves, for until we are conscious of our weaknesses, we cannot correct them; until we know our strengths, we cannot use them well."

We are given such simple things to help us remember who we are. I am so grateful for a little girl in pink who helped me remember this today.

What helps you remember?