Every morning at Camp Wapomeo they have what is called a morning meditation. This is a time for someone to read an inspirational poem, story, or thought. The following morning meditation was written and read by a counsellor, Jenny Bordo. These are her thoughts:
“Last month, while I was up at the outpost, I spoke on the phone with one of my old counsellors. It was a pretty brief conversation – I was too excited to say much of anything – but at one point she stopped me and said she’d wanted to say something to me for awhile: that I inspire her, just for being who I am. And this kind of got me thinking, because I would never in a million years consider myself an inspirational person. It made me wonder about all of the people who I could inspire – or might have already inspired. It made me look around and realize who my heroes are, how many people I look up to, how many people make me pause and go wow, every day.
And that’s what I wanted to talk about this morning: heroes. Because I can’t think of any other place so jam-packed with smooth people – most of the people I look up to come from camp.
A hero doesn’t have to be perfect, or more skilled at something than you are. A hero doesn’t have to be the most beautiful person in the room, although maybe it will seem that way. A hero doesn’t have to be stronger than you or faster on portages. A hero doesn’t have to be happy all of the time, or smarter than you, or have any clue at all of what’s going on. But a hero might be able to make you laugh when you feel like crying; might say something or sing a song that makes you stop in your tracks, aware suddenly of how beautiful it is up here, or how lucky you are. And a hero should make living – life – everything – seem just a little more exciting, make the colors a little brighter, make your smile a little wider. You might not even know someone’s name, but they might put so much of themselves into each day you can’t help but be a little bit in love with them.
I’ve found so many heroes this summer so far. Some have kept me going for an hour, while others I might not forget as easily. My message to you, as we begin this month, is to keep your eyes open for the people who might inspire you, and to keep in mind that you, yourself, no matter how unlikely you may think it, might be a hero to someone else.”
It made me stop and think. Jenny wondered why I wanted to print it. I hope that you understand.
As you begin another year, think about how this applies to yourself. There is the saying that “we pass unseen through moments of other peoples lives” and you never know when you will make a difference or become a hero to someone.