Debilitating self-criticism can creep into every aspect of our lives.  Especially when there is some truth to it.  It reminds me of the Baobab Trees from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince story.   Every day we must pay close attention to our goals and our agendas.

“Now there were some terrible seeds on the planet that was the home of the little prince; and these were the seeds of the baobab. The soil of that planet was infested with them. A baobab is something you will never, never be able to get rid of if you attend to it too late. It spreads over the entire planet. It bores clear through it with its roots. And if the planet is too small, and the baobabs are too many, they split it in pieces…”

Our culture and society move quickly enough that it’s possible to go through the days and weeks without thinking of our actions.

Mindfulness is becoming the trend.  Teaching students mindfulness and helping students be aware of their thoughts and actions is a large task.  I find it rare that adults are present of mind.  I came across an excellent scripture that summarizes the hope.

My dear children, let’s not just talk about love; let’s practice real love.  This is the only way we’ll know we’re living truly, living in God’s reality.  It’s also the way to shut down debilitating self-criticism, even when there is something to it.  For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves. 1 john 3:18-20