When I logged into Girls Can’t WHAT? this morning, the random quote from the top of the page that greeted me was this:
“Let her [woman] receive encouragement for the proper cultivation of all her powers, so that she may enter profitably into the active business of life.” ~ Lucretia Mott
I don’t know the exact context of this statement. If I recall correctly, I found it in a book somewhere and wrote it down. It sounds a bit like a prayer to me, and perhaps it is. I think the part that smacked me in the face this morning was the word “proper”. As women, we have lots of powers. Some we use for good and others we squander or don’t use at all. Ultimately we are the ones choosing which powers to exercise and whether we will use them for good or evil. We are all constantly trying to “cultivate our powers” but are we receiving the right materials to prosper?
Ms. Mott suggests we should receive encouragement in order for the proper cultivation to take place. Much like a plant that needs water, sunlight and other nutrients to grow, encouragement is essential to our own growth. Without it, we may cultivate power, but is it proper? We can still grow and have power but it will be weak, wilted and poorly formed much like a plant that doesn’t get enough sunlight. Without the positive influence of encouragement, we cannot grow properly.
What can we do to ensure that we are properly cultivating power to others today?
