Honestly
Looking honestly at yourself is not fun.
It’s like brushing your teeth, eating greens and going to the gym.
It can be a pain at the time because it seems like nothing is happening, but the result show up later.
Sometimes you have to be ‘that friend’ to yourself. The one who can call you on your B.S. one moment, and be your biggest cheerleader the next.
There are lists.
We all have them, the good, the bad and the ugly. There’s another column we’re missing. The context.
Resentment, anger, fear, jealousy, hate, envy, procrastination, negative thinking, perfectionism etc, etc, etc.
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A list of character defects is unappealing, in the bad and ugly columns, but realistic. We all have these defects, ready and waiting to jump out, often at the slightest provocation.
But the context column, they make sense when we’re backed into a corner, feeling alone and neglected, don’t know what to do, don’t have someone to ask for help, have learnt them from others, don’t know there’s another way.
Gentle, imaginative, industrious, kind, playful, resourceful, witty, wise, etc, etc, etc.
Don’t forget the good column.
There’s context for that too, when you’ve had a good night’s sleep, enough to eat and drink, the time and space to think, familiar surroundings where you feel safe and secure, inspired by people and situations.
We are all the character types on the list and different times for different reasons.
If you admit them to yourself, honestly, you will start to notice them in the wild.
Be kind to yourself when you see fear and jealousy. Maybe be playful when you see negative thinking. Try being gentle when perfectionism shows up.
(Thank you for reading. Take what you like and leave the rest.)
