Instagram/@brandimaxiell
Over this past weekend, Brandi Maxiell gifted us with some heavy thoughts that went deep into one’s consciousness. The post was laden with meaning and asked an almost obvious-yet-incisive question: “Have you been using the gift that’s been given to you?” And the answers plainly showed that this rendition hit home.
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The clip Maxiell shared was not one of those fluffy motivational talks about various life philosophies, karmic laws, or anything like that. The discussion was stark and brutally honest: each one of us has a gift they can do almost effortlessly-everything that one kind of just clicks for, whereas another finds it nails-absolutely hard. Maxiell gave an example to express her point: she told of when she discovered her gift back in the fourth grade, when she would just talk in front of the class while most other children froze. “I never prayed to God to give me the gift of public speaking. He already gave it to me. I just had to work on it.”
Then came the knife-like analogy about parenting. She spoke about how she had gotten the children an Oculus headset: they lost interest and somehow managed to lose the headset. “I was mad because I gave them this gift, and they didn’t appreciate it,” she continued. “Now imagine how God feels when we ignore the gifts He gave us.” Woah-would you snap to attention after that?
And thus, the comment section soon turned into a miniature therapy arena. “I feel like I’m using my gift, but sometimes the gift gets heavy,” wrote one user. “I swear I’m cleaning up my clutter up here so I can go back to my gift. Love that you said it because I already knew that’s what I had to do,” blurted another. Maxiell’s words were the shove in the direction of some who were desperately clutching for help.
Another hardcore fan responded with some semblance of half-mocking, “Why you in my business like this, friend?” And honestly, that is the best reaction one can muster when someone lays it bare for your good. Then more came spilling down in tears: a user from Detroit thanked Maxiell for saying, “I needed this badly.”
The wild thing about the whole concept is how universal it is-a gift for public speaking, healing people, making art, or just being that friend who makes everything okay. Maxiell’s point is: your gift is not supposed to feel like a fight to pinpoint. This is the thing you do so effortlessly that others stand amazed at it. The hard part isn’t in finding it; it’s in making use of it.
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So if you’re sitting there wondering what your thing is, it might be time to clean up the clutter, whether literally or mentally—and then get back to doing whatever makes you feel like you’re in your own lane. Because Maxiell said that to ignore your gift is like an Oculus headset under a pile of dirty laundry. The last thing anyone’s going to want is to explain that to the universe.
This story originally appeared on Celebrityinsider
