Marianne Williamson [*] wrote, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented or famous?’ Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world.”
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from A Third Serving of Chicken Soup for the Soul
[*] This quote is usually attributed to Nelson Mandela, as it was in the original illustration and later in the movie Invictus . In fact, it was written by Marianne Williamson in her book A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of “A Course in Miracles” , Ch. 7, Section 3 (1992), p. 190. About the mis-attribution Williamson said, “Several years ago, this paragraph from A Return to Love began popping up everywhere, attributed to Nelson Mandela’s 1994 inaugural address. As honored as I would be had President Mandela quoted my words, indeed he did not. I have no idea where that story came from, but I am gratified that the paragraph has come to mean so much to so many people.” See < http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Marianne_Williamson >.