When I was in my late teens, I came across a greeting card that had this quote on it. It is often attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson, but it is not clear who the author is.
To laugh often and much; To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.
On the inside of the card it simply said:
Congratulations!
When I saw this card I started crying and something inside of me broke open in the form of a prayer from the deepest part of my soul… and I said, “Please God, let my life make a difference.”
It was the simplicity of this line that has continued to stay with me all these years:
“To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.”
As Lightworkers, I think that many of us get caught up in the idea that we have to “heal the world” and change many, many lives. But if even one life has breathed easier because you have lived, you are making a difference. Every life matters. Every. Single. Life.
And for most of us, we somehow make the world a bit brighter more often than not. It can be as simple as greeting the checker at the grocery store by name… posting a sweet message for a friend on their Facebook page… saying a prayer for a family member….
Your lightwork doesn’t have to be big and grand. You don’t have to have a best-selling book. You don’t have to be famous and perform amazing psychic feats. Just keep showing up and seeding more love and light into the world.
And if you’re reading this… I’m positively sure that more than one life has breathed easier because you are here. One life. One soul has breathed easier. Because. Of. You.
Take that in.
And for this moment, let that be enough.
Truly, when you generate molecules of love into the world, you are doing the work of the angels.
Bless you, dear friend. I am so grateful to be traveling this journey with you. It’s an honor to know a beautiful soul like you.