I remember working part time during college, before and after classes, along with other students. Some of them were ambitious. Some were not. One day I overheard our supervisor make a comment about me. Said I was a clown, or something to that effect. He might as well have smacked me upside the head. Inwardly, I knew he didn’t know who I really was. It affected me greatly.
Fast forward to this past Christmas. In my spare time, I created ten copies of a small 24-page, Onion-styled “Edge Extra” on my home printer to entertain the staff during the holidays. One guest in attendance remarked that he didn’t know I had it in me to create such a piece. He asked my employer, “Did you know he had it in him?”
My immediate response was, “I can do anything I put my mind to.”
Recreating The Edge magazine was not on my radar months ago – and now, here it is, in your hands (or on your computer monitor) – and neither was our new website, which I am now learning how to administer. I know I have barely scratched the surface of my potential. I will write books. I will create new art. I will do other things that I haven’t even dreamed of yet.
And so will you. That’s what I really want to tell you in this moment.
I am convinced that, like me, you are mispercieved by others in your life. Your family knows something about you, but probably not everything. They don’t know about your inner gifts that have yet to be expressed. They may not know about your deep yearning, the desire to do something big – even though you’re not sure what it is, you don’t know why you constantly think about it, and you don’t know how you will go about doing it.
Our task is two-fold: breathe awake our inner yearning and move forward, step by step, to do what it is that makes us unique in the world; and to inspire every child we meet to keep their dreams alive (fortunately we now have a president who is playing a huge role model for our young people in that respect).
The butterfly is the archetype of transmutation, a new form springing out of the old, and for that reason, it has become the symbol of the new Edge. It will appear somewhere each month on our cover. It appears on our website, and at the end of articles in this publication.
Whenever you see it, let the butterfly remind you of a new form that is aching to burst forth from within you – especially if no one in your life expects it to happen. Nothing is stopping it from happening, except you. Join me this year in creating something new.
Before I close, I want to thank those who have been instrumental in The Edge’s rebirth – specifically Melissa May, Suzanne Ahjira and Deborah Lynn11 – and so many others who have shared their love and support with us. Forty days ago, Cathy and I bought this publication and began creating what is now known as The Edge LLC. We hope you like the new edition of The Edge: Soul of the Cities. Remember, we are always open to your comments and letters.
I loved this article. It is so easy to be impacted greatly by what others think of us and not allow ourselves to really shine. I grew up in an environment where I really didn’t feel like I was allowed to shine and this has followed me into adulthood. I am finally at a point where I am embracing my gifts and enjoying the opportunities I have to share them with others. Thanking you for sharing this story with us, Tim.