Put your strengths to good use

The Mighty Oak

It’s the time of year when Felicity’s college organises a trip to the West End to watch a musical. It was Hercules this year, so Fe and I watched the cartoon version at home, as I had never seen it before.

As with last year’s musical (I was then inspired by The Devil Wears Prada), some themes emerged and grabbed my attention.

These themes were also echoed in the mystery school I belong to, as we were exploring the energy of Oak at around the same time.

I feel therefore compelled to write to you about these themes today.

Like Hercules, hero in the Greek mythology, Oak, a familiar figure of our landscape, is known for its strength. It is thanks to its high burning temperature that mankind could create tools from iron ore during the Iron Age. Later on, oak trees were felled en masse to build ships and the navy that was instrumental to the development of the British Empire.

Oak trees are hosts to hundreds of species: insects, invertebrates, birds and small mammals. Their canopy often encourages the growth of holly trees beneath, their trunk sometimes offers support to the ivy.

When I look outside the window at the oak tree at the back of our garden, I see life teeming: pigeons resting, ravens nesting, sitting on the top branches and bickering with the magpies, squirrels running up, down and across. Sometimes a robin perches to sing his song, and blue tits fly from branch to branch looking for food.

When I see Oak, I see an entity that puts its strength to the service of other species, hosting them across its roots, trunk, branches and canopy.

In the Disney movie, loosely based on the Greek legend, Hercules, born son of god Zeus, becomes human after Hades, the god of Hell, tries to get rid of him with a potion that strips him off his immortality. Hades sends his minions Pain and Panic to do the job, but they fail to complete their mission, and Hercules keeps his god-like strength.

He is brought up on Earth by a human couple and becomes an outcast in his teens, as he’s unable to control his strength.

Looking for answers, Hercules learns of his origins at the temple of Zeus, where a statue of his dad comes to life and tells him that he can earn back his god status by becoming a ‘true hero’.

The moral of the story, which you can read in full here or watch the cartoon if you prefer, goes like this: ‘A true hero isn’t measured by the size of their strength, but by the strength of their heart’.

Hercules and Oak remind us of putting our strength to good use, not turning it into a blind, aimless or destructive force.

Potential is another theme when it comes to Oak. You may have heard the familiar saying, “From the tiny acorn comes the mighty oak”.

Not all acorns turn into big trees though. They need help along the way, starting with birds like jays to plant them, the right soil, climate and space to grow.

Similarly, Zeus sends Hercules to the satyr Philoctetes, aka ‘Phil’, who is known for training heroes. It is with Phil that Hercules learns to master his strength, so that he can reach his potential and become a true hero.

As some of us celebrate Imbolc and the return of the light in the Celtic wheel of the year, I invite you to put your own strengths to good use.

This time of year isn’t about rushing into big and bold actions, it is more about following the gentle stirrings you see in nature, like the buds forming on the trees, the tiny shoots emerging from the soil, and the bird song in the early morning.

I invite you to use this time to get to know your natural strengths better. If you’re in doubt, let me reassure you that we all have natural gifts and talents.

If you’ve read my blog or been at one of my talks, you will have heard me talk about one of my favourite tools: the VIA Character Strengths.

You can use this tool to be more aware of what your strengths actually are in the first place, and then how to make the best use of them in your endeavours. You can learn how to master them, avoiding under and overuse. Your strengths can also give you clues about your purpose, if you’re in quest for meaning in your life.

And if you think you might need my help to nurture your potential, let’s have a chat.

After all, every hero needs a mentor at some point on their journey 🙂

PS - read my story and examples of how my values reflect my own strengths in my work as a mentor.