Living Our Truth

I have been thinking about truth. Can anyone be truly authentic in the way they live? What is it to be authentic? To me it’s living in a way that honors your personal beliefs and values. I think that it’s doable, but not easy. We live in an age where fake and conformity are valued more highly than personal values or individuality. Technology has brought us to a point where we can speak real-time with people all over the world yet we hide who we are. We edit ourselves to protect our image and to stay safe.

We are a society of masks. Our days are filled with a simulation to cover the person we want to be. For many of us it begins with getting up in the morning and preparing to go to work. Most jobs require some form of established clothing, our uniform. It doesn’t matter whether it’s the Board Room or Burger King. A formal dress code is required to cover our individuality behind an image of mind numbing sameness. Let’s look at our job, is it what we really want to be doing for the rest of our life? Does it nourish to our soul, or is it what we feel is expected? Have we put what we really want out of our mind as something not achievable?

Another way we may hide our truth is by not speaking it, because we feel that to be honest may cause someone pain. Instead of having a loving honest conversation with our friend, family member or co-worker about how we feel, we hold onto the feelings and it festers inside us, eventually turning into frustration and perhaps anger. In time the negative emotion bursts out causing a rift that can ruin the relationship.

What about the veil of expectation. Let’s imagine we get home from work and we’re beat. All we want to do is put on our favorite sweats, make a bowl of popcorn and chill on the sofa while watching a B-movie. The phone rings and it’s a friend inviting us to meet her and a group of friends we haven’t seen in a while for a drink and an early dinner. We would really rather stay home but decide to go. It’s been a while and we don’t want to seem like we are avoiding them.

After we shower and open the closet we find another mask. Did we purchase any of the clothes because society gives us an expectation of beauty that we feel we must meet in order to be accepted rather than ridiculed for being weird or different?

We are taught to conform from the time we are children. To do what we are told and believe the party line. We are indoctrinated into a system that expects mindless conformity without question. So we remain silent robots, being who we are expected to be. Living a life that perhaps we don’t want, unaware that there is an alternate world available.

Do we forget individuality and personal beliefs? Absolutely not! We can live a life that resonates our truth. We just have to be aware of those times when to conform is the wise choice. We have to let go of fear associated with daring to be the real us. To speaking our truth and stand for what we believe is acceptable. Of course it’s scary sometimes, but if we do not honor our beliefs, who will? There is a limit of reason, of course. We can’t tell our boss exactly what we think of him or her and expect to remain employed, but we can be respectful and voice our opinion.

To expand our minds and see that there is no limit to possibility frees us to live our life on our terms, an unlimited life. Being different is much better than being a robot!

Have a good evening

Blessed Be ❤ Sharon