We are all very unique individuals. God created us with no two of us the same. He made us where we have unique fingerprints, palm prints, facial features, DNA, etc. With that being said, why are we all placed into a cookie cutter society where we all have to think, act, talk and behave the same. It is ludicrous to think that the God that created us so different from each other would then put us in a position where that uniqueness separates us from others. That however is the truth. If you conform you are accepted and normal, if not, you are either a radical or a free spirit. Often times frowned upon by society, and sometimes even rejected.
I know there are people out there that have never allowed others to see them for who they really are. I know that they are out there. I have seen them, I have talked to them, if I were completely honest with myself, I am one of them. In a previous blog I was speaking of my anger and I was just releasing this anger and I wrote the following words "Ok, so I let the door swing open today. I have reached out and grabbed the handle and pulled it closed.". As I looked back upon that post, I realized how tightly I held that door closed and for it to escape me that day even for just a few hours was unusual for me.
I know that there are many of you out there who can completely relate to this feeling. You never really let people see you for who you really are. You guard your thoughts your actions your feelings, you guard everything that you do. You literally spend your life with that veil pulled up so tightly around you that people will never even get the chance to appreciate the real you because you are so afraid that the real you is not good enough or perfect enough or whatever else there is that doesn't measure up. The irony is that the veiled you that you put out for the world to see is experiencing all of the things that the real you is avoiding. The veiled you is liked by some, hated by some and some just really don't care anything about you.
As I said, it is a rare opportunity to see behind the veil of most people. Maybe life is just a masquerade. We put on our mask and we step out the door and we pull the veil tightly around us never realizing that we are the ones unable to see because the mask and the veil have clouded our vision and even our thoughts.
I challenge you today to lower the veil and to remove the mask and to just be yourself. You might be surprised what an unobstructed view of others will do for your opinion of yourself.
"It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for something you are not." ~Andre Gide
GW
Well, I teared up reading this. For me, it's definitely a fear of rejection--something I experienced early in my life with my father. My sister had died as a toddler...I was a couple years older, and felt that nothing I did would ever be as good as she could have been. My dad has a very harsh tongue and I was the recipient of it many times.
ReplyDeleteMy dad's 3rd wife once said that you only see the side of people that they want you to see. That is so true. I think we adapt our personalities depending on the situation and the people we're with. Because, as you said, we're trying to blend in instead of celebrating our uniqueness.
Lots to think about here, GW. Thanks for the thought-provoking post. Maybe I'll try to go forward this year and pull my veil back...ever so slightly. What about you?
Is that your photo of the horses? Love the fog and the one horse bent down eating while the other is looking up. Well done!
ReplyDeleteLove the photo - one of my absolute favorites. And this is a beautiful, thought-provoking post. I enjoyed it greatly...
ReplyDelete~BB
Belle,I hope that my pen did not strike a nerve for you. If so, I hope that it was only a glancing blow and that you will reflect briefly upon it as you move forward. I was actually inspired to write this blog because of a conversation that I had with you earlier in the week. I love your photography but I really do wish that you would write a little more. I enjoy reading your posts.
ReplyDeleteThe photo is actually one of my favorites. It was taken when a grassfire was threatening our neighborhood a while back and the smoke was still hanging in the air. It was a mare and her colt as they were settling down after the excitement of the fire.
Thanks BB I am glad that you liked the photo and the blog. Your Blog has inspired me to broaden my way of thinking and the things that I am willing to blog about.
I am so glad that you both stopped by. Please feel free to stop by and browse any time that you like.
GW
Oh, it struck a little bit of a nerve, but that's okay! This might be the year that I can finally let my hair down and be free. Who knows? Blogging, photography, connecting with other souls, on the net and elsewhere, is working to bring me more out of my shell. I thank you, my friend. I wish that I hadn't had to take my "dad" posts down - you would have seen an eyeful there. But my dad and his wife are now computerized (Facebook even!) and I can't take the chance they'd see how I really feel.
ReplyDeleteYour photo is spectacular. :)
Hope you have a good weekend!
I would love to see that post. Is it something that you would be willing to send to me? I think that letting your hair down and being free is a great idea. Go ahead, pull the mask down and release the veil. Thank you my friend.
ReplyDeleteI hope that your weekend is great as well.
I found myself coming back to this post - and it reminds me of something that a very special man has told me all my life - how special I am. How rare I am. It's taken me twenty four years to see it, and believe it. To be free from the veil we hide behind just allows us to be even more unique.
ReplyDelete