“She grew tired of
hiding her true nature and decided to go ahead and outshine them all. Her
outrageous beauty astounded them! She’s never quite been the same…only better.”
~Kate Bares-Johnson
So many of us have learned to hide who we are in order to
cope with (perceived) judgment from others, whether that be from actual
experience or from what we were told. We may have been brought up in an
environment where we were expected to be “good” or “quiet” or “perfect” in
order to hide our flaws, be accepted, or fit in….or perhaps we were told not to
brag or get “too full of ourselves”, for fear we would appear arrogant or
conceited about our beauty or talent. We may not have even been verbally told,
but perhaps we witnessed enough of others’ communication and behaviors to make
some (unconscious) decisions about how to “be” or “not be” in the world. Even
in the most loving of families, most of us developed enough negative, false beliefs about ourselves to cause
us to question our Self-worth and hide who we are for fear of rejection and
judgment. We may have gotten out of balance in our efforts to stay in hiding
and developed unhealthy behaviors, such as addictions and codependency. And
now…as adults, we have outlived those false beliefs, but the behaviors have
become habitual and we’ve now turned to the task of finding and retrieving our
original, authentic Self.
If I’ve just described your life…WELCOME! You’re right on
time.
This is not about blaming our parents or our childhood, but rather,
it’s about recognizing that somewhere along the way we did what every human
does…whatever we had to, to get love
and acceptance. We figured out how to blend in rather than stand out, which we
thought would keep us safe, secure, accepted and connected to other humans.
Only problem is, we slowly disconnected
from our true Self in the process. We
not only learned to judge our humanness, but also to hide our Divinity…our
magnificence! If we believed that veiling our flaws would make us more lovable,
it’s very likely we also believed that celebrating our BEAUTY (inside AND out) would
make us arrogant and make others uncomfortable. However, nothing could be
farther from the truth!
Okay, let me rephrase. Some things might actually be farther from the truth. There are
some people who are envious, jealous, and uncomfortable around people who are
bright and shiny, but only because they can see themselves in the reflection. Their
discomfort is due to their own longing to BE WHO THEY TRULY ARE, but the ego
demands they continue to stay in hiding. The reality is, there are few things more
inspiring and inviting than a person who shows up in their most authentic Self,
neither hiding nor proving, but simply BEING. We are drawn into their energy
because we recognize their Soul; an unencumbered freedom and willingness of
expression, and it reaches in and touches something deep inside us. It shakes
our Soul awake.
So, yes, yes, YES it’s okay to be true to your Self. Not
just okay, but necessary that you
never EVER hide your feathers! We’re here to thrive and experience WHO WE TRULY
ARE and we must be willing to risk it to come fully alive…not only for
ourselves, but for the planet. When any one of us lives out loud, we create a
safe and sacred space for others to do the same. We inspire passion and
creativity, love and kindness, strength and courage. We invoke Truth and
integrity and hope. We empower others to heal and grow, and find purpose in
their living, too! We make waves and we make ripples and we have no idea how far
reaching they are. So please, promise me that you’ll never EVER hide your
feathers, dear one. You have no idea the impact you have in the world, just by
being YOU!
