I recently bought Glennon Doyle’s book “Untamed” and am so glad I did. I am resonating with their stories. She is like my sister from another gentleman, who like me lived in a cage of expectations of being someone who was not to fit in with everyone else.
Although I am not done with the book, what I have read made me ask myself this question; Am I living my truth and being the wildest version of me?
My answer …
Not quite and not in all the ways that I can.
For example, I still have my moments where I don’t share my feelings to avoid shaking the boat. And more recently I realized that I was putting off (a nicer way of saying that I had been putting off) work on my book, “The Stories I Told to Myself” … guess why? Writing it requires me to stand firm in my truth, being the most vulnerable and raw that I have ever been.
BUT even though I have work to do, I am proud to say that I am living my truth more now than ever. I’ve come out of my cage for the most part. (I think I still have some toes or maybe even one foot in the cage, which is so much better than my whole being.)
GET OUT OF THE CAGE
Gloria Steinem, taking a verse from the Bible, once said … “The truth will set you free, but first, it will make you angry.” And as I think about living my truth without taming or caging (like Glennon), a sense of freedom takes hold of me. I can’t say that I get that pissed off as it scares me so much to get out of the cage completely.
What if exiting it is not safe? What if my truth bothers others? (Meet my inner critic, folks!)
Regardless of what my inner critic says, I know that a) the feeling of fear and the inner critic only reminds me how important it is for me to live my truth, b) that the truth is my key to staying out of the cage of a once and for all. everything, and c) I have never moved from a place of comfort.
So what is my truth?
FOLLOWING MY NORTH STAR
My truth is my North Star and if I am fully present in it, I know when I am following it or not.
What I am finally realizing, my truth is about making myself proud, proud of myself as I am. It is not about doing what is expected of me, but about doing what is expected of me. My truth shows itself as me, even if at that moment I am moody and irritable.
Being able to authentically show myself, no matter what I look like, is the best gift I can give myself and the best I can do for the way I think.
Here’s the thing, if I DO NOT keep working to live my truth, I will allow my inner critic to convince me that it is safer to transform myself into someone to please others … which always leads me to settle down and go back in the cage.
At the end of the day, I am here to live for myself. I am not here to live for others. I am not here to be someone that I am not to fit in anywhere. And I’m damn sure I’m not going to settle down, so I end up back in that cage.
I’m committed now more than ever (thanks Glennon) to being the cageless me, which means doing the following …
– Share my feelings when it is important to do so.
– When I feel that I am moving away from my pole star wondering: “What is my truth at this moment?” and then paying close attention to what I think and feel.
– Finish my book no matter what!
SOME THINGS TO REMEMBER
As I continue my work living my truth, I will use the following reminders as support …
1) There will be people who will not agree with my truth and that is fine. For every person who doesn’t, there are those who will. The most important thing is to know that I will always be with me when I live my truth.
2) My truth does not need to be compared to someone else’s to see if it is up to par. My truth is good enough!
3) My truth does not need to judge someone else’s to validate it. My truth does not need validation.
4) My truth is mine. It is for me and defined only by me.
So, my friends, I want to ask you a question …
Are you living your truth and are you the freest version of yourself? If not, and if you’re ready to grab the key from the cage, be sure to get closer.
(As originally posted on the Walking The Walk blog)