There were tears and smiles and hugs and laughter and always, there was love.

Yesterday I coached in the Givers 2 room of Choices, a personal development program both my daughters and I took in 2006 that transformed our lives and our relationships. Ever since, I have coached as often as possible in the five-day program, and always, whenever it is being held in Calgary, in Givers 2, the weekend segment during which participants work on articulating and claiming their purpose.

It is a blessing to be there, to be able to volunteer and be part of miracles unfolding as individuals open their eyes to the truth of their existence — we are not just bits of  matter glommed together to form a body taking up space here on earth. We matter. We count. There is a purpose to our presence in the world and it is our right, our duty our responsibility, to claim it and live it and shine.

In 2006 when I went through Choices, I left the five-day program with a Contract — that statement that says who I am in the world and what I need more of in my life to live my dreams. That word for me was ‘fearless’. To be my authentic self in the world, I need to be a ‘fearless woman’. To not let self-doubt and insecurities rob me of playing big, keep me from being my best.

When I went back for Givers 2, my contract statement was enhanced with my purpose — the statement that says what I do in the world to express my greatness, which as Marianne Williamson writes in “A Return to Love”, is in all of us. “It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Post Choices, my contract and purpose statement have evolved from my original statement of, ‘touching hearts and opening minds to set spirits free’, to encompass my deeper understanding of me and who I am and what I want to create in the world. It now reads, “I am a radiant woman igniting joy in an enlightened world.”

To do and be my best in the world I must always remind myself that playing small does not become me. Letting self-doubt keep me from shining does not serve the world. I must radiate joy and love and peace and harmony. To live on purpose, I must share my gifts openly and lovingly with the world.

Yesterday, making a difference was easy because I was in a place where all 110 people in the room were focused on the thought and belief that to express their difference in the world makes a world of difference. To change the world one heart at a time, as Thelma Box, founder of Choices has been committed to doing since 1985, we must have a change of heart as to who we are and what our purpose is here on earth.

To create a world of difference, to touch hearts and open minds, to ignite joy in an enlightened world, I must be my difference in the world. I must live my purpose.

Yesterday, I had the gift of living on purpose in a room where I purposefully chose to be present and let my light shine.

Are you willing to let your light shine today? Will you live on purpose?