“Become your highest you, your best you, your strongest
you.”
-Loretta Claiborne
Your Highest Calling
Once in a while I meet someone who really makes me look at
myself; someone who challenges my view of the world as well as my view of
myself. This was the case when I met
Loretta Claiborne during breakfast.
Loretta grew up with a mental handicap and was one of seven
children. She wasn’t able to speak until
she was four so when she started school she was challenged. In fact, after a while the principal called
to meet with her mother and told her that they wouldn’t be able to educate
Loretta.
“My mother looked at him and said, “I have seven kids not
six. You will educate her!”
She said, “My mother wanted her children to receive two
things, a good education and respect.”
Loretta beamed as she
relayed her story. She knew that her
mother cared for her and was her advocate.
It was her mother’s strength that kept her moving forward. But, there was another challenge in front of
Loretta.
“I never felt as if I had a voice! My decisions were always made for me. Now I layout my own road map.” She said. From that moment it didn’t take her long to discover
her true path.
One day a teacher gave her a flyer and asked her to take it
home to her mother. When she got home,
she handed it to her mother who read it and immediately wadded it up to through
it away. Luckily her aunt was there and
said, “Let her give it a try. It may be
a chance for her to channel her feisty spirit.”
As a result, Loretta began to participate in track
events. She had found what she was
really good at and she poured her passion into it. Now, years later, she’s competed in events
worldwide and is a global speaker. Her
message is one based on her personal discovery.
“One day, I became
frustrated and went home to tell my mother that I was going to quit. I’ll never forget the lesson my mother taught
me. She said, ‘You stop now and you’ll
always stop. You quit now and you’ll always quit. You don’t ever quit!’ Ever since then, I’ve never quit.”
It isn’t that Loretta hasn’t been challenged since she
learned not to quit. She has. When she decided to learn to play tennis and
she worked for five years before she was able to defeat her greatest
rival. Her never ending commitment to
become her best is the secret to her success.
It’s a secret she happily shares so I wanted to share it with
you. “Become your highest you, your best
you, your strongest you.” Loretta
says. You can do it!
When I looked at the smiling face before me I felt a new
courage and a new personal commitment to follow Loretta’s advice. It is everyone’s highest calling. Will you accept the challenge?