Calm down your life has a right over you part 3

4)     You are special

As people we tend to copy and imitate others to make ourselves feel and look important. Most of the time what we do to ourselves and our lifestyles are due to what others say about us or what they do. People who were happy with the way they previously looked or what they previously did instantly change to a new lifestyle because some pointed out a criticism at them or they see that the people around them do not do what they do. Thus most of us change who we are not because we want to but because we are directly or indirectly forced to. 

When we expose ourselves to those around us or the latest trends we begin to see ourselves and our ways of living our daily lives as inferior and meaningless. The question that lies here is that why are we content with ourselves before we expose ourselves to society and the world around us and why do they make us feel inferior? the answer is that we don’t want to be different. We see being different as odd and weird, kids want to have what their friends have otherwise they will be different from their peers, we want to look like others because we will be different if we don’t dress, walk or talk like them. When you ask someone why would you want that dress, haircut or shoes, the answer is ‘because everyone has them’, this is an indication that we don’t make the decisions in our lives, others do.

We seek our status in imitation and pleasing those around us and forget about our personality, what makes me me because the clothes, your hairstyle and attitude is someone else’s. It might be your friend’s personality you are copying or the dress code of society or the lifestyle of a celebrity, we forget who we are and what we like or want because we somebody else. We begin to lose ourselves and our true self is locked within us, waiting to be developed and explored. If you ask someone what are you like, who are you personally and what define you from other’s, many of us have difficulties answering who we really are as we waste so much time creating a fake mask for ourselves.  We don’t know who we are because we do not practice being who we are and that is why we have to acknowledge who we are.

All humans are different and we have to embrace our differences, difference extinguishes all of us from one another. For example, there are many people in the world called Sarah, Annie, James, Charlie, Omar, Fatima or Abdullah, but what distinguishes them from one another are their differences. No two Annie’s or Omar’s are the same, they each have their own traits and characteristics that make them special and unique. No two countries, nations or tribes are similar either, Allah says:

‘O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another.’ (49:13)

This implies that difference is to help learn about one another and embrace each other’s skills and qualities, so why do we cry over looking at others when we have our own qualities to embrace. Our lives are a mystery that need to be uncovered, we have so many skills that we don’t know about or take for granted and don’t see as a big deal. Learning about ourselves is key to understanding how special we are and uncovering what makes us different from others, so to become special we must first acknowledge that we different. Only then can we find out our hidden talents and what makes us unique from the rest.