Jasmine's Place Issue No. 18 - May/June 2017 | Page 28

INSPIRATIONAL

You Are Worth hat You

Value Shanna Mallon

Encouragement to see life just a little differently
Four years ago , my husband , Tim , and I attended a press trip where , tucked into our swag bag , we found an info packet that listed all attendees by name , website , and number of followers . Flipping through the list , I noted some bloggers , another couple , with a reach of over 500,000 .
A few hours later , when we rode the elevator down to an opening night reception in a room at our hotel , a smiling woman introduced herself and I immediately connected her to that bio and the numbers I ’ d seen . What would have otherwise been an ordinary meeting became a meeting with a person who ’ d impressed me . She was somebody .
And while the experience of esteeming people by blog readerships may not be relatable to everyone , the experience of esteeming people by something is . Whether we do it by our children ’ s accomplishments , our career developments , our physical appearances , our connections , or our social media followings , we naturally tend to give each other ranks .
As a mom , I notice it every time I ’ m with other parents and we start comparing developmental milestones : Is your baby crawling yet ? How long will you nurse ? What percentile is he in ? As a writer , I hear it in questions about bylines , book sales , and endorsements , or , as a
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