I was attending my daughter's Sixth grade graduation a few days ago. The children walked down a long aisle centered between a sea of people. As I watched these beautiful children walking down that aisle, I witnessed a remarkable thing.

Many walked with their eyes cast down to the floor, hoping to go unnoticed. Some walked with their head hung low as if they were embarrassed. There were others who walked so fast, it was obvious they just wanted to get through their discomfort as quickly as possible. Out of the entire graduating class of 103, only a handful of  students walked comfortably with smiles, making eye contact and enjoying the moment as they walked down that long aisle.

I don't remember how I felt on my own sixth grade graduation. So, I tried to put myself in the minds of these children. How would I have to feel in order to walk with my eyes looking at the floor or my head hung low? I would have to feel ashamed, unworthy, unsure, shy, embarrassed...
All these feelings can be expressed 3 words: I'm not enough.

A feeling of maternal love washed over me as each child walked past me. And I thought "to each one":
"You are enough"
"You are precious."
"You are unlimited potential that is yet to unfold."
"You are a beautiful child, created by God."
"You are worthy of love and everything you yearn for."
"You are more than enough."

After that, two things occurred to me:

1. It is up to us, the adults in our children's lives to keep feeding them with praise, love, and encouragement; so as to give them a solid foundation of self worth. Because somewhere between birth and sixth grade graduation, self doubt is born and sometimes sets up shop for good.

So, consistently tell your children or somebody else's how wonderful they are. How special and innately talented, how beautiful, how loved they are. Let them know that they can truly be whoever or whatever they want to be when they grow up.

2. If self doubt sets up shop for good, it takes a long, long time to rid ourselves of it as adults. Some people never do . You are that same beautiful child you were at sixth grade graduation. The only difference is, now you are in a bigger, older body.

I'm here to remind you:
"You are enough"
"You are precious."
"You are unlimited potential that is yet to unfold"
"You are a beautiful child, God's creation."
"You are worthy of love and everything you yearn for."
"You are more than enough."

Now go to the mirror and speak those words to the child inside you and the adult before you. It's time to remember who you are.