You deserve to be seen

This week I went to Creative Mornings with a crew of friendtors I roll with. They sit in the front row of every event we attend together; right smack in the middle. This makes me uncomfortable. Who am I to be sitting in the front row? I never wanted to be a keener. Keeners aren’t cool, right? At school, I’d hang at the back, and at events, I’d find somewhere inconspicuous to sit.

But I was wrong. I’d learned something in Grade 4, and carried that bad idea through my whole life.

We all pay for a ticket to an event and then choose to sit somewhere we’ll hear less, see less, and learn less. In school, we pay to be in classes, then sit at the back and keep our hands down at question time. What are we worried about, learning too effectively?

I think for a long time I didn’t want to be seen, called on, or noticed in any way. I wanted to fade into the scenery. But a good life isn’t built at the edges. You have to sit in the front row of your own life.

This month we need to be keeners in our own lives, our own learning, and our own growth. We need to sit right smack in the front row and take up some space.

Put up your damn hand. You deserve to be seen.