The Brass Ring

When I was a kid we would occasionally go to an amusement park on the beach. One of my favorite rides was the Merry Go Round. It was beautifully crafted and the colors made you think that fairies must have done the job. The most wonderful part of the ride was the brass ring. It hung just out of reach but with courage, planning, emotional and physical strength you could reach out and grab it. It would come loose from it perch and you received a free ride in return.

I was raised to grab for the brass ring. The issue arises when parents teach and train their children to grab for the ring but aren't given the satisfaction of capture. There is no praise, respect or understanding. There is only that the brass ring you captured is just a brass ring which is not good enough, that you need to reach for the next one. What happens is, you stop grabbing and you keep looking for approval in the wrong places.

What I learned from my own experience is that seeking praise and encouragement from outside yourself (ie. parent, grandparent, boss) may only create a sense of emptiness and apathy if you are seeking it from persons who do not have the ability to celebrate and honor your accomplishments. That truly finding out how to walk you own path, feeling satisfied for accomplishments you have made and honoring those accomplishments by living them, sets you up to seek the next brass ring.

Much to my mothers disappointment I never had the courage to grab for the brass ring on the merry go round. But, I forged my own brass ring and with each additional brass ring they slowly turned to gold.