How Am I Inherently Valuable?
For beings like me who ponder
You have probably heard before that you are inherently valuable by virtue of being human. Never attach your identity and value to y
our career, money, etc. they say.
What does it mean to be valuable simply by virtue of being human you might ask? It is almost impossible to grasp the idea of value outside of our tangible contributions to our friends, family, loved ones, and society at large.
After so many months of trying to grasp how I am simply valuable for just being, I finally came to an answer.
I have a 4-year-old niece I only met about a year ago, she is the smartest, cutest, and the most witty 4-year-old I have ever known. Her understanding of language, the world around her, and emotions marvels me all the time. Her mother had died of cancer about a year before and she had to come live with my parents. When she got to my parents and met my mother, she asked her, ‘Are you my mummy? Will you be my mummy?’, to which my mum replied, ‘Yes, I am your mummy.’ She has been calling my mum — her grandmother mummy ever since and won’t agree to call her grandma. There is a lot of intelligence in that as a 3-year-old child. To not only recognize the void created by a mother’s demise but to see another opportunity at being nurtured and ask for it.
I became more eager to meet her. And it was an instant attraction between us. Did she have to make me money to be loved by me? Did she have to serve a purpose, do chores, to be valuable? As clever as she may be, she only had to be herself for her to be deserving of our love. She had to only be here. She doesn’t plan to be witty, funny, or cute, she is just being herself and by virtue of that inherently valuable.
Our value I figured is inherent because just by existing, we interact with humanity. Our smile might bring someone joy, our compliment may brighten a gloomy day, our listening ear may lend some clarity, our love may lift humanity, our story may inspire, and how we live our life may motivate even in the tiniest ways. We often underestimate the impact we have on others, as many positive effects we create are unintentional. We don’t always realise the difference we make by just being ourselves, living our lives, and interacting with the world around us.
