Last week, our Understanding Personal Values blog referenced my daughter’s trip to Guatemala. There was such an overwhelming response to that post that I decided to ask Logan to write something about her trip. I believe we can glean wisdom and understanding from the experiences of others. As such, I asked her not to write a summary of her time overseas; instead, I asked her to write about the most important thing she learned. I was so encouraged and challenged by what Logan had to say. I hope you will be as well.


I recently took a trip to Guatemala with my church. We spent a week in Guatemala City visiting a couple of local schools and spending time with the kids there. I remember walking in on the first day and realizing that I had no idea what I was doing. I was surrounded by the friends I had come with and locals I had just met and was completely overwhelmed as we prepared for the first wave of students to arrive. We were in a little chapel filled with pews that had to have been designed with the sole purpose of being uncomfortable. It was hot and no one spoke English; my less than well-travelled American heart didn’t know what to think. And then the kids started piling into the room, so excited that they jumped and smiled and waved like they wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else in the world. The apprehension that could have come from walking into a room filled with people they had never met and didn’t speak their language simply didn’t exist. In its place was an openness and affection that I had never experienced. Over the course of our time there, the kids laughed and cried and danced with us. There was no fear in their interactions with us or with one another. There was no hesitation when showing affection or emotion. Their greatest strength was their ability to be vulnerable and to love without reservation. Although they knew that we would be leaving in a few days and would probably never see them again, they were not hesitant to open up and invite us into their world. The brevity of our relationships did nothing to hinder their depth. I walked away from the school on the last day completely overwhelmed with the realization that their willingness to be vulnerable gave them the freedom to be moved, changed, and loved by another person, even if only for a few days. Brene Brown has become incredibly famous for a Ted Talk she gave on the topic of vulnerability. If you haven’t seen it, you should watch it immediately because it will change your life. In her talk, she explains that those who are willing to be vulnerable do so because they believe they are worthy of love and belonging. She has learned that it is impossible to experience true human connection without vulnerability. And without this connection, we lose sight of what it means to have compassion, to be moved, and to love other people. Vulnerability is not an easy thing for many of us. I have spent most of my life believing that to be vulnerable is to be weak. I have always adhered to the “never let them see you sweat” mentality, because to allow someone to see me struggle would ruin my carefully crafted illusion of strength. But the reality is that to run from vulnerability is to live in isolation. Strength is not found in hiding from others; strength is found in community. Vulnerability is not a sign of weakness; on the contrary, it is the truest sign of strength. To be vulnerable is to share the good and the bad, the ugly and the beautiful, the joy and the sorrow. To be vulnerable is to be human. [jotform id=51954776646168]  ]]>

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