February 16, 2022 by Jermaine E. Martin
In order for something to be truly remade or reborn, it sometimes has to be stripped down to its core, exposing its true, basic components. Take for example, an old classic Ford Mustang that an owner wants to restore. The type of car that one dreams of bringing back to its original beauty and glory.
Anyone familiar with classic car restoration knows that the first thing that owner would do before spraying a single drop of paint on that aged and rusty body would be to sand it down to the metal. This process removes all of the old paint and imperfections that have built up on the body over time. He doesn’t want the old coats of paint, dents and dings to interfere with the new coat of paint. Once the body is sanded and smoothed, a primer coat is applied and then it is finally painted.
The reason that the owner goes through the tedious process of sanding and stripping the car body down to its core is to ensure that when painted, its true beauty shines through. He knows without a doubt the true beauty of that car and the way it will look when fully restored. The reason he knows this is because he has seen that car at its best. Either through pictures, on TV, or in person, he has been able to see what that car looked like at its best -as good as the day it rolled off the assembly line!
As human beings, we don’t roll off of an assembly line ‘polished’ and complete. No one knows what he or she will look like or how they will perform at their best. We are born to learn, grow, and become wiser and stronger with life and age. Unlike a car, when we are created, we don’t come with manuals, photographs, or specs that show how we should look and perform at optimum capacity. We have to live and experience life in order for that to be revealed. As of today, no one has been able to conclusively predict what we are capable of becoming individual as humans. GOD doesn’t provide manuals and specs for each human being. He likes to keep this inside information all to Himself it seems.
Dust yourself off!
Getting covered in rust over time has never been a problem for humans, but our spirit and potential to shine can get tarnished just the same. Setbacks, negative experiences and life itself can start to affect our attitudes and our ability to live life to the fullest. Therefore, there comes a point where it becomes necessary to dust yourself off! Whether or not you allow ‘dust’ or negative experiences to define you is key. Just like rust on a car, if we allow negativity to remain, it will eat away at our core and eventually consume us. This ultimately ends up effecting the way we are seen by others and the way we see ourselves.
As human beings, we have to constantly do our own unique type of “sanding and “painting” in order to put on and keep our best shine. Like the guy that takes the time to fix up that classic car because he knows it’s worth it, we have to know that it’s worth it to do whatever it takes to maintain our shine, our true beauty, and our potential.
The good news is, unlike a car that is at its best when it is “born” on the assembly line, the scrapes, bumps, and bruises we encounter as human beings along the road of life are actually a necessary part of our journey in order for us to become our best. Most successful people will tell you that those scrapes, bumps, and bruises were critical in developing the strength and attitude to become successful. It is pretty fair to say that we have to get knocked down a few times in order to realize our true beauty and capabilities.
Jermaine E. Martin is an empowerment leader, speaker and author of “American Mindset: Unstuck & Unstoppable” (Amazon), out now.