“Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken.” -Oscar WildeWhen I asked a girl in my grad school program about her holidays she sighed with relief about them being over. “Now," she noted about getting away from her dysfunctional and troubled family, "she could finally be herself again."
It’s kind of a bummer that sometimes people feel like they can’t be themselves around others whether that is their family or other groups.
But, just as I’ve been thinking about “being yourself,” Deborah Anderson happened to share a scripture in Relief Society that made me think about a corollary; do we sometimes “oppose” ourselves?
Deborah pointed out a favorite verse of hers found in 2nd Timothy 2:24-26: 24. And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,
25. In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;
26. And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.”
It looks like we need to be more than just ourselves. We need to be careful we aren’t “opposing ourselves.” Lest ourselves need to be recovered!
Ultimately, we need to be our very best selves! And, in line with Oscar Wilde’s sentiment, that is clearly something that nobody else can do!
