Can self-esteem be earned?
“Wow! Look at the size of that thing!” gasped the young trainer as he intimidatingly gawked at the colossal metal dragon that slithered around the opposing side of the stadium.
He himself commanded a towering robot samurai whose long electrical blade was already drawn and raised to its ready position.
“That metal dragon must have won multiple matches in order to be able to evolve and grow to that monstrous length! Let’s win this next match and shrink that dragon back down to size!” snarled the boy as he tried to tame his robot’s nerves.
When the match begun, the dragon immediately unfurled thousands of metal vents that lined its sleek body and discharged an endless plume of black blinding smoke. Within seconds, it was shrouded in a thick veil of smog. And it was descending dangerously towards the dazed and disoriented samurai.
But just before the dragon was able to attack, the samurai caught a faint glimpse of the serpent’s red glowing eyes. He expertly dodged out of the way and then swung his electrified sword. It landed expertly at an exposed flap near the dragon’s neck. Immediately, the behemoth short-circuited and crumpled lifelessly to the ground.
Once the samurai was officially declared the winner, the boy received a massive (self) E-steam coin. When he inserted it proudly into a designated slot in his robot’s back. The coin was vaporized into steam and expanded the samurai’s hulking frame so that it grew another 10 feet taller. While this was taking place, the boy turned around to survey his fallen foe. He expected to see the defeated dragon shrink to half its size.
But he was wrong. Instead, the dragon grew exponentially larger and even more powerful. Rather than receiving a winning coin, its trainer always showered it with unconditional acceptance and affirmation instead.
Many people falsely believe that self-esteem is built on the foundation of victories and achievements. But real self-esteem is actually forged in the crucible of failure and rejection. For when we experience unconditional acceptance during these raw and vulnerable times, we will then understand and embrace our true and inherent value.
