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Episode 0003: The Flawed Vessel: What If Your Cracks Are Your Power?
25 Plays2 months ago
We spend so much time trying to be whole—unshaken, unblemished, unbreakable. But what if the very thing you see as a flaw is actually what makes you valuable?
In this episode of The GR8TNESS Router, Zena C. shares the story of The Flawed Vessel—a powerful reminder that purpose can be disguised as imperfection.
💡 Ever felt like you’re losing more than you’re gaining? Like no matter how much you try to hold it together, something keeps slipping through the cracks? Maybe the real question isn’t about what you’ve lost—but about what you’ve been watering all along.
Press play, reflect, and let’s get into it.
🎤 Listen now & reclaim your impact.
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Transcript
Podcast Introduction and Sponsorship
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This is the Greatness Router, where we connect purpose to process one conversation at a time.
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This episode of The Greatness Router is brought to you by YNG Greatness.
Promotion of Greatness Tee
00:00:30
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Because reminders matter. The classic greatness tee isn't just a shirt.
00:00:37
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00:00:48
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in e ss dot com onyourrateness dot com
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now Let's get into today's story.
The Story of the Two Jars Begins
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The Flawed Vessel.
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There's an old story passed down through generations about a woman who carried water each way.
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Every morning, she balanced a wooden pole across her shoulders with a large clay jar hanging from each end. She walked the same dirt path from the river to her home, bringing back water for her family, her neighbors, whoever needed it.
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One jar was whole. It held every drop. The other, it had a flaw.
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a thin winding fracture ah along its side.
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Each time the woman reached home, the flawed jar had lost half its water along the path.
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For years, the whole jar was proud. It did exactly what it was made to do. The flawed jar, it carried its shame.
The Lesson of the Wildflowers
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It felt useless.
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One evening, as the woman walked home under a setting sun, the flawed jar finally spoke.
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I am so sorry, it said. Every day i fail you. i spill half of what I should be carrying.
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I waste your effort. I am not whole. ah
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The woman stopped, gently set the pole down, and motioned to the side of the path.
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Do you see it? She asked.
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The jar looked down and saw something it had never noticed before. a long trail of wildflowers blooming in soft shades of purple and blue and gold. Oof, I know it was pretty.
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planted seeds along your side of the path. the woman said with a smile. And every day you watered them. Without your flaw, this beauty wouldn't exist.
Reflecting on the Value of Flaws
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So let's challenge the story a little bit. Let's sit with this for a moment.
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How often do we see our flaws as failures? instead of purpose in disguise?
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We spend too much time trying to be whole, like the whole jar, unblemished, unshaken, without flaws.
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But what if the thing you're actually ashamed of is actually what makes you valuable.
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What if you're watering flowers and you don't even realize?
Questioning Societal Views on Brokenness
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As always, let's look at these stories from a few different angles. Let's break this down. Of course, there are many ways to look at this story. Don't get me wrong.
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But here are three that stand out to me in this moment.
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Number one, the whole versus broken mindset. Whole versus broken. One way to look at this, we've been conditioned to believe that whole is good and broken is bad.
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the whole jar Felt worthy. The flaw jar. Felt ashamed.
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How often. Do we fall into that line of thinking. That perfection. Equals value. And anything less.
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Is a failure.
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But here's the thing. The whole jar contributed exactly what was expected of it. The flaw jar, it did something unexpected.
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It created something new.
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So we have to ask ourselves, are we only measuring our worth by what we contain? Or are we open to seeing what we pour out?
Unnoticed Impacts and Unexpected Beauty
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Which takes us to number two, the invisible impact.
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Now, here's something that doesn't get talked about enough, in my opinion. The jar didn't know it was watering flowers.
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It thought it was failing. Meanwhile, beauty was growing in its wake.
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How often do we do the same? We focus on so much on what we lost, what we didn't do right, where we came up short.
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that we never stop to look at what's growing because of us.
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Some of us are so focused on the crap that we miss the flowers.
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That's the part we don't always see, the impact that happens. Even when we believe that we've failed.
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So number three, the who told you that was a flaw mindset? Who told you that? Who told you that lie?
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Now, here's the part that gets me. The jar wasn't ashamed until it started comparing itself. ah It wasn't ashamed until it believed itself.
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that leaking water was a failure.
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oh So here's the real question. who told us our cracks were flaws in the first place?
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Who told you that? Who told you that lie?
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Because the woman in the story, she never saw it as broken. She saw potential. She planned for the so-called flaw because she knew it could be used.
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um Message. So maybe the real lesson here isn't about self-worth. Maybe it's about questioning the definition of flaws altogether.
Personal Reflection on Growth
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So we've looked at three different angles today, but honestly, that's really just scratching the surface of how valuable this story can be.
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Maybe this story hit you in a different way. Maybe. Maybe you saw something and entirely different. And honestly, that's the beauty of this. That's why I love these stories. Everyone takes something different away. And that's such a beautiful, beautiful thing.
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But here's what I do know. At some point, we have to stop looking at the crack and start noticing the flowers.
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So... I don't hear a story of this nature and just move on. ah sit with it.
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ah turn it over in my mind, not because I need answers, but because I've learned over time that there's always something to see that we might've missed.
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Life has a way of making you look deeper. Sometimes you see the cracks and sometimes you see the flowers and sometimes you don't see anything at all until way later.
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Okay. Like it, it varies y'all.
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I've been there. I get it. i've I've looked at my own life and thought, this is broken. This isn't how it's supposed to be, yo. But looking back, like stopping and literally turning around, looking back, I can see where I was watering flowers even without realizing it. I could see it.
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Sometimes you just have to take the moment to stop and smell the flowers, right?
Recognizing Personal Growth and Contributions
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Maybe you've had those moments too, right? The times when you thought you were losing, but something was growing because of you.
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and that's why this story stays with me. Because it reminds me that the cracks aren't the end of the story.
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And they never were.
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So here's the kicker, y'all. Sometimes the win isn't in holding it all together. Let's be very clear.
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Sometimes the win in what you create while falling apart. Come on, somebody.
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I have to repeat that. Sometimes the win is in what you create
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while falling apart.
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Meditate on that.
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So let me ask you, are you too focused on what you've lost to notice what you've been watering?
Greatness Tee as a Growth Reminder
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This podcast, It's about routing you to your greatness, not reinventing, just reminding. Because sometimes all we need is a moment to reclaim our space and our own impact.
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And so here's a shameless plug for y'all. That's the energy behind the greatness tea. It's simple, direct, undeniable. A statement, not just a shirt.
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If you need that reminder, grab yours in classic black and white. It's available at ownyourgreatness.com. That's G-R, the number eight, T-N-E-S-S.
00:14:10
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So... check it out. and might be helpful for you. It was helpful for me for sure. um We can go into that on another episode and another date, but that greatness tea definitely has been helpful to me.
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Again, that was a shameless plug.
Encouragement and Call to Action
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Let's keep it moving. Until next time, keep pouring, keep growing, and most of all, keep recognizing the flowers along your path.
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Peace, love, light. It's me, Zena C. And I'm here for another episode of The Greatness Router. Peace.
00:14:52
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And that's a wrap on this episode of The Greatness Router. If you found some value in today's conversation, be sure to subscribe, rate, and definitely share. It helps more people connect to the journey of greatness.
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Until next time, keep moving with purpose.