With a broad nose, full lips, and brown skin, Ruby Taylor always knew she was beautiful, but she soon realized that the world didn’t necessarily agree. Watching her niece struggle with the idea of being created in God’s image spurred this former social worker to write her first book. Ruby further bolstered her niece’s self-image by commissioning artist Shanequa Gay to paint her. When Ruby saw the painting’s uplifting effects, she commissioned a series of similar portraits for other girls, then made a documentary so that young women of color she couldn’t afford to immortalize on canvas could see their skin, hair, and features reflected and affirmed in a film. Then she organized an event, named after one of her favorite historical figures, Augusta Savage, a pioneering African American sculptor and art educator, to screen the film and pamper the audience.

It’s worthy of mention that Ruby had a major car accident in 2014, which left her with a brain injury that makes getting through each day an exhausting challenge. The documentary came later. (Let that sink in for a moment.) She is constantly tired, but she is also tireless, because she feels she has a mission from God. Or rather, she has missions from God. The next one: “a book and movement to embrace God’s love for all.”

Here’s my question of the day: what if we refused to let our challenges, even the major physical ones, define us? We all have limits, but what if we made inspiring other people—even one other person—a greater focus than our own pain and trouble?