Susan Senator

A dear friend of mine had an interesting “assignment” from her daughter’s high school English teacher. It was to make her own Polonius speech, and she gave me permission to share it with you, because I think it is a blissful piece, and a healthy way to view life no matter who you are.

Dearest,

As you continue to grow and find your own footing as an adult I would like to try and put into words the things I’ve found to be most important in life. As you know, I am very unorthodox about pretty much everything, which I know has often been a challenge for you. But all of us are always doing the best we can. We can’t do MORE than the best we can. We can just do the best we can. Which I guess is one of the important things I’ve learned. EVERYONE is ALWAYS doing the best they can, and if we can really see this and accept it we save ourselves a lot of heartache, especially when we look at our own behavior. When we look at things in retrospect or are projecting ourselves into the future, it’s very easy to think we could have done something better or we should be able to do things a certain way in the future, but all that is just thinking. The reality is we did and will always do only the best we can and no more, and that is ENOUGH.

I’m so happy that you are who you are. You surprise me a lot with your wisdom and insight and knowledge, (which is different from wisdom) and I don’t worry about you anymore. I used to worry when I saw you trying to be some one that you’re not, because I know how painful that is and because I see how beautiful you are as you are. You are kind, tolerant, smart, fair, curious, talented, introspective, funny, discerning, creative, beautiful and honest. Sometimes honesty stings, but in the end it is always “the best policy”.

I feel like I want to write more to you in another letter, but for the purposes of the assignment I write the following, much of which you already do without any problem:

Trust yourself.
Give other people the benefit of the doubt.
Be kind.
Be honest.
Take care of your body.
Be discerning about who you spend your time with.
Speak up for yourself.
Ask for and accept help when you need it.
Say “yes” when you mean “yes” and “no” when you mean “no”.
Keep your word.
Avoid becoming entangled in other people’s dramas.
Try not to take things personally.
Do what brings you joy.
Realize that everyone is doing the best they can, including you.
Avoid doing things that might compromise your judgment.
Listen to the voice within you that KNOWS what you should do
and follow that, even if others don’t understand or approve.
Trust that you are loved and lovable.
Look for the beauty in every person and situation.
Be open minded and open hearted and find a way to give back to the world.
Trust yourself. Trust yourself. Trust yourself.

Love, Mom