Seeing ourselves clearly means recognizing the larger picture

Football fans will recognize the name Don Shula. The legendary Miami Dolphins coach led his team to two Super Bowl championships and the NFL’s only perfect season. He was also accustomed to being recognized wherever he went.

Shula once took his wife on vacation to a small town in Maine, hoping to find a quiet place where they could relax without attracting attention. When they entered a nearly empty movie theater, everyone inside suddenly began applauding.

Shula whispered to his wife, “I guess there isn’t any place I’m not known.”

Don Shula was one of the most recognizable names in American sports. But that wasn't the reason a theater of strangers in Maine applauded when he walked in.

✨3 Ideas

1. Clear vision

Seeing ourselves clearly is where humility begins. Our talents and abilities reflect, in part, our genetics and the influence of those who left their fingerprints upon us.

Humility doesn’t ask us to deny our gifts or accomplishments. It asks us to remember that we didn’t create them alone. 

Making ourselves smaller isn’t humility -- it is seeing more clearly who we are. Classic wisdom teaches that humility is the mother of all good character traits -- the root from which spiritual and ethical refinement grows.

2. When ego becomes centric

The trouble begins when ego moves from being a supporting actor to demanding top billing. A healthy ego gives us self-esteem and a sense of our inherent worth. But when it insists on becoming the star, our perspective changes.

Ego puts the self at the center. Humility puts the self in perspective.

A distorted view of ourselves distorts our view of everything beyond ourselves. Other people, our communities, and even the voice of the soul itself are pushed aside when everything becomes about us.

3. Looking beyond and behind

Humility grows when we look beyond ourselves. A star-filled sky or an encounter with transcendent beauty reminds us that we are part of something far greater than ourselves. We can recognize our significance without imagining ourselves at the center.

Perspective emerges in knowing our place in the larger picture.

We can also look behind us. Parents, teachers, and circumstances have helped us become who we are. Recognizing what we have received awakens humility, one of the soul’s natural responses to seeing clearly.

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📜2 Quotes

“When arrogance comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom”
— Proverbs 11:2

“In the course of my life, I have often had to eat my words, and I must confess that I have always found it a wholesome diet.”
— Winston Churchill

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❓1 Question

What is a sign of false humility you’ve noticed in others -- or perhaps, in yourself?  

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And why were those people in the Maine theater applauding?

A man came over and shook hands with Shula and his wife. “I’m surprised you know me here,” said Shula. “Should I know you?” asked the man, puzzled. “We’re just glad to see you folks. The manager said he wouldn’t start the film until at least ten people came in.”

Perhaps the best part of the story is that Shula himself enjoyed telling it. He could laugh at the moment when, just for an instant, he mistook his place in the larger picture.

Wishing you a week of clear vision -- behind you, beyond you, and within -- and a soul that soars,

Rabbi Ze'ev Smason

P.S. What have you noticed about the way a genuinely humble person speaks or behaves?

P.P.S. As promised, here’s an interview with my daughter-in-law Estrella. She asked me a few questions about family, faith, and life -- and somehow Spiritual Sparks: A Reader made its way into the conversation 😃 Watch our conversation here