Truth Matters

For years, I was lying about my truth.

Not telling lies. But not speaking my whole truth to anyone.

Under the thrall of expectation and image, I lived a life that was not my own. At times, I couldn’t even tell what my truth was. But I knew when I wasn’t speaking it. I could feel the compromise. I placated. I played safe. I let lies live so I would be accepted, protected.

But over time, that began to feel like the greatest betrayal. Because in denying my truth, I was denying myself. And in denying myself, I was denying the world around me, too.

When we are not fully ourselves, we rob the world of what is most beautiful in us. When we bow to the life we think we should live instead of the one we are called to, we surrender something profound: our life as it could be lived. The bravest, most authentic part of us is what others crave most - and yet it is the part we hide most fiercely.

Here is a secret I keep forgetting: If it feels uncomfortable, do it.
If I am scared to say it, say it.
If I am worried what others will think, lean in anyway.

This is the only path to a courageous life I know. I stumble through it constantly.

Pride has no place here. I make a fool of myself often. I feel embarrassed regularly. I am terrified, more than I care to admit.

But oddly — this is where I feel strongest, too. Not because it is easy, but because it is true.

When I let go of the need to be right, of the need to be seen in a certain way, of the need to protect myself from other people’s perception of me, then:

I arrive.

Into me. Into the bravest, most vulnerable, most imperfect parts of myself.

And everything is perfect there. It is aligned, it is truthful and it is real. In letting go of conditions for safety, with full presence, there is no blockage of soul, no blockage of purpose, no blockage of ‘me’.