In Rodger & Hammerstein’s musical “Cinderella” there is a song that has been stuck in my head. Cinderella has angered her stepmother and is sent to her chair in the corner. While there, she sings these words, “In my own little corner, in my own little chair I can be whoever I want to be…”
Today, I find myself spending yet another day sitting in my own little corner. Some days I am able to be, what I would consider, hyper-productive. Other days, simply getting changed out of my pajamas feels like a victory. I have read countless articles talking about how it’s ok to not be productive, why we should allow ourselves to simply exist without adding pressure to make good use of this time… I am grateful for those articles. I am grateful for the permission to simply be, because there are days when that feels like the most I can offer. There are other days that I feel hungry to be active, to create, to connect. On those days I find myself “in my own little corner” searching for ways to expand who I am and what I can do.
In your corner, who do you want to be? When no one is watching, when expectations for you are low, what do you want to found doing?
I am a goal-oriented person. If I make a “to-do” list I will complete the tasks simply to be able to cross them off the list. I have been trying to improve my little corner by setting some goals for myself. Some of them are simple, such as “make my bed every day”. Others take a little more practice, such as “be able to do a headstand”. Other goals require a little more of me, “I want to be found at the end of all of this craziness, with a new depth to my relationship with the Lord”. Some days this goal simply looks like reading the same verse a few times, other days it means journaling, or trying to read my bible out-loud to see what that feels like. Sometimes it looks like coloring to see if the Lord wants to speak to me in new ways (I am discovering that my coloring skills are sorely lacking).
In your corner of the world, today, who do you want to be? Because for a little while longer we will all remain in our own little corners. Don’t worry. There is safety in your corner. Safety to try something new. If you were Cinderella, sitting in her chair in the corner, dreaming of who you want to be, what would you dream of? Is there a way you can challenge yourself, in this time, to be whoever you want to be? (Even if that simply means trying to make your bed every day)
Written by Erin Morgan, Dance Ministry Specialist
