Quotography: Cheat

Each of us has been put on earth with the ability to do something well.
We cheat ourselves and the world if we don’t use that ability as best we can.
~George Allen

Each week Kelley, over at the road goes ever ever on, gives Quotography prompts to anyone who wants to participate. This week the word was cheat. Aside from the obvious, I wanted to find a lesser-used meaning so I might be able to combine it with an Autumn shot I took this past weekend.

What do you do well? Each of us has many God-given talents. Whatever you have chosen to do with your life, are you using those talents to the best of your ability? Or, are you just simply going through the motions of living life?

Most of the time, life is hard. It’s so easy to fall into “survival mode” just to make it through the days. But is that the best use of the time you have on this earth? While survival mode may be necessary on a short-term basis to get through a crisis or until we can make our way back on track, it’s not the best environment to nurture and develop our talents.

Each of us has a responsibility to ourselves….and maybe to the rest of the world….to be the best we can be with our talents and abilities. Our culture would be much poorer if a little boy named Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart had decided, at the age of five years old, to act like every other young boy in Austria. In Spain, a boy named Pablo was painting at eight years old and, through nurturing his talent, would go on to forever influence the artistic world.

While you and I are probably not the next Mozart or Picasso, we all have things we do well. Are you a born leader? Do you have the gift of teaching? Are you someone who has the ability to listen and help others make sense of their lives? Are you able to influence others through writing? Are you exceptionally organized or good with coordinating projects? The list of potential talents is a long one. All we need to do is sit and be honest with ourselves.

Whatever abilities we possess, we owe it to ourselves and our Maker to use them to be the best we can be. Stop cheating yourself and others, and make the most of the life we’ve generously been given.

So what are you waiting for?