Humility is a virtue good for the soul
I would like to begin today's piece with this "New Serenity Prayer” by Fr. James Martin , SJ which I saw on Facebook.
"God, grant me the serenity to accept the people I cannot change, which is pretty much in everyone, since I’m not clearly you God. At least not the last time I checked.
"And while you’re at it, God, please give me the courage to change what I need to change about myself, which is frankly a lot, since, once again I’m not you, which means I’m not perfect.
"It’s better for me to focus on changing myself than to worry about changing other people, who, as you’ll no doubt remember me saying, 'I can’t change anyway.'
"Finally, give me the wisdom to just shut up whenever I think that I’m clearly smarter than everyone else in the room, that no one knows what they’re talking about except me, or that I alone have all the answers.
"Basically, God, grant me the wisdom to remember that I’m not you. Amen.”
***
I am proud of my two bosom friends, Lizette Garcia and Tess Garcia-Cuenco. They are humble. I never heard of them brag about their status or achievements in life, or their travels. Whenever one of our friends in the group titillate us with her achievements when she was younger, they just kept quiet and listened intently. Their humility reminds me of what a wise man said, “Shallow water makes too much noise; Silent water runs deep.”
How can we stay humble despite of the wonderful things happening to us? The wikiHow website suggests the following ways:
Admit that you’re not the best at everything or anything. No matter how talented you are, there is almost always somebody who can do something better than you . Nobody is the best at something.
Recognize your own faults. We judge others because it’s a lot easier than looking at ourselves. Unfortunately, it’s also completely unproductive and, in many cases, harmful. Judging others causes strife in relationships, and it prevents new relationships from forming. Perhaps even worse, it prevents us from trying to improve ourselves. Everybody makes mistakes.
Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Part of being humble is understanding that you will make mistakes. Understand this, and understand that everyone else makes mistakes, and you will have a heavy burden lifted off of you.
Admit your mistakes. Although you may fear that people will be angry and frustrated with you, it is always better to admit than to cover it up. Admitting your mistakes shows that you’re not stubborn, selfish, or unwilling to not look perfect. Admitting your mistakes will make people respect you more.
Avoid bragging. It’s okay to have a healthy self-esteem and to feel proud of your accomplishments, but nobody likes it when someone constantly tries to bring attention to themselves and their own achievements. If you feel like you really have done something great, chances are people will have already begun to notice that, and they will come to respect you even more for your humility.
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