Hello all! I can’t believe it has been over a year since my last blog post. I have been itching to write again and I have quite the list of blogs to write. Over the past year I have been thinking about what authenticity is and how some people may not have thought about it much since it isn’t something that is taught very frequently. For this post I am using the definition of authenticity as: “authenticity is the degree to which one is true to one’s own personality, spirit, or character, despite external pressures”. So why have I chosen to write about this topic? I think it is relevant to ascension as humans in general. We can’t move forward as humans without being who we were meant to be. However that translates to you whether it is your destiny, your life purpose, god given talents, or soul path. I believe that we all have a purpose, we all have something to work on while here in this existence and if you push back on your authenticity your only pushing back on life itself. That is one reason I write this today. I am just being me.
Early Years
Our biggest obstacles to being authentic are external forces when we are kids. The society that we live in today is made up of systems that like to keep us in a box. We are not taught to think for ourselves. We are taught to follow rules that we shouldn’t question so that we can achieve a life that is acceptable to society. See a previous post on kids here. To me this is not the key to happiness or success. It is meant to keep us under control. And those that are not easily controlled are then labeled. Labels are judgments by those that don’t agree with someone’s behavior for one reason or another. Examples of those labels are ADHD, brash, or lazy. And while most parents want the best for their children most parents follow suit and expect their kids to march to the same drum as they did when they were kids. So the beat continues.
Bullying
Aside from parents and teachers in the early years of development we also have peers that cast judgment on each other which if left unchecked can lead to bullying, depression, anxiety, suicide, and even mass shootings. I have noticed an increase in bullying in general over the last ten years. There was a movement in the mid 2000’s where bullying was more of a topic and was seemingly being addressed more but that movement seemed to have faded. And now what do we have.. We have mass shootings occurring more and more frequently with the most common response being that guns are to blame. I recently did some research on teen suicide and found that 14 kids kill themselves every day in the U.S.. Where is the outcry for that to stop? And for every kid that is successful in taking their own life 100 kids think about taking their own lives, so that means that every day 1400 kids think about killing themselves. And why? I believe these kids that are different are not allowed to be authentic. They are battling external forces that are preventing them from listening to their own inner voices, preventing their own authenticity. To me this is unacceptable and disturbing. I am at the point where if my kids start getting bullied and the teachers and principals don’t take action to stop it I will be considering home schooling my kids.
Rebels
The United States has a reputation for creating it’s rebels. These are the people that resist the status quo and do their own thing despite societies grip on the majority. They have created great music/art, became inventors, became business owners, etc.. One thing that rebels seemed to have accomplished is being able to let go of the programming that was inflicted on them in the early years of their lives. For most of the rebels that truly embrace their authenticity they seem to be the happiest. Living in the moment, not affected by others opinions or hate, living out their dreams, and having confidence in their own path and mission in life. Rebels seem to be living a great life right? Not always especially if they are in the public spotlight. They have to deal with people that do not approve of them in one way or another constantly.
While most of the reasons why people are not completely authentic to themselves and to others is external there are also internal forces that prevent people from being themselves. Over time our self confidence deteriorates and we end up questioning ourselves. Inner demons are given a pass to roam freely, we look for a way out, we latch onto comfort foods, we get addicted to things that we know are bad for us, and we become fake. In the end we lose ourselves, we lose our authenticity and some keep heading in the wrong direction with no end in sight. No hope, fearful of the next day, until it becomes too much and those that can’t take any more call out in a bad way. You can’t love yourself when you are in a state of not being able to be authentic. One of the reasons why I write this today is so that maybe it would help people be more aware of how people close to them are doing. I encourage you to look around and encourage people to be themselves even if for a time it doesn’t look good. That stuff that is buried inside needs to come out so that it can be dealt with.
Let it be
Part of this process of being authentic has led me to look at others and come to an understanding that everyone should be as authentic as possible even if I disagree with how they are behaving. How I see it is as long as someone is not hurting someone else in any way then they can do whatever they want. That goes along with my individual liberty beliefs. I don’t think anyone should tell another person how to behave just because they don’t agree with how that person is behaving. Let it work itself out. Let the people involved work it out. Otherwise these things will keep coming up over and over again because they are not being worked out. Suppressing emotions will not solve problems. What is it that you experienced in your life that creates a negative outlook on someone else just for being themselves? I have felt this and I think everyone has felt it at some point in their lives. Being aware of our thoughts and where they come from is very important in accepting someone else for who they are. Easier said than done. Fear can bring out the ego to protect us, but is the fear we have about a situation really substantiated or is it inflated by external pressure? Internal pressure? You may begin to shed new light on a situation when you are aware of where your thoughts have originated from.
Driving the point home
A while back I posted about the presidential election and how it would stir things up and it definitely has done that. I have been monitoring the political stuff a lot more lately. Speaking of bullying.. I don’t think any US president has ever been so bullied in his life. I feel sorry for the guy, but he has been quite resilient in maintaining his authenticity. What are our kids thinking that are watching the “adults” smear and bully the president? Are kids saying to themselves “I want to be the president so I can be made fun of, called names, and be told I don’t know what I am doing”? Are they bullying others because their parents/teachers do it? I admire Trump for sticking to being himself despite the lefts attempts at spoiling his campaign promises by any possible means necessary. While I don’t agree with his name calling when others attack him he is being authentic and to me that is better than being fake and hiding it behind closed doors. Trump is a rebel because he doesn’t succumb to what people think a president ‘should’ act like. He is just himself and that is good enough for me.
So in closing if you are still reading.. 
What are you doing to be more authentic? What are you doing to let others be more authentic? Are you supporting authentic people? When I think of living in a free country I think of being able to do anything I want as long as it does not impact others in a negative way. To me that is true freedom. If I can’t be authentic then I am dead!
Live better, be happy, and love all that is!
Namaste!