1. Open and Honest Communication- I realize now that while I still consider myself highly spiritual, I don't want this one facet of me to override my ability to speak from a place of complete transparency and openness, and especially in relationships. It hasn't always been easy for me to be open about my own personal issues, so perhaps it would be easier for me to admit that while I don't want to limit myself, I have since accepted this one harsh reality that not everybody has your best interest at heart. I would rather keep myself to a standard that’s open and honest around those that I can trust because this allows for more genuine connections to take place.
2. Authenticity- Being with someone who allows me to be 100% myself and to freely express myself is such a great feeling. God knows that my heart has been through a lot over the years, and while I try my best to take comfort in His promises, the journey of allowing Him to work through my own heart always feels a little easier when I have friends, or even a partner, who are able to offer full respect for the kind of person I am deep down.
3. Freedom and Independence- While I don’t want to speak for anyone else here, I’d like to think that most people would associate freedom or independence with being able to make choices that can satisfy their own happiness and well-being. It’s not overrated to think that happiness is something that can be an extension of one’s well-being, because in all honesty here, a world without joy or happiness just feels dull and boring to me. Life is too short to play by society’s rules or to allow others to tell you how you should live your life; I've learned this many times in my life and I can tell you this from experience: the less you care about things that don't matter, the better off you are in the long term!
4. Spirituality & Wellness- The way I see the world is directly connected to how I feel about myself on a mental, emotional and spiritual level. If I feel like I’m operating too much from one lens and not allowing enough balance to exist, then some readjustments need to be made. I don’t like seeing things purely from a black and white perspective when it comes to religious or spiritual affairs, and my reasoning for that is because I believe in compassion, empathy and unconditional love- and these are things that I know that Jesus has embodied during his time here on earth. It’s not my place to shame people or to cast down judgment unless it’s absolutely necessary, and quite frankly, I feel as if too many people in this world tend to get hung up on behaviors that don’t give away the full picture. It’s one thing to say that you won’t tolerate abuse or violence; I would obviously never condone such acts. However, I feel like it’s inexcusable to ignore or dismiss any underlying mental or emotional problems that could possibly aid to any “bad behavior”.
Getting to this place of fullness of what I believe in and not feeling sorry for that has been a process. I've been putting in a lot of work behind closed doors to unlearn certain beliefs that didn't feel like my own, and the person I want to become is someone that I can feel proud of in my own right. It is possible to create a life by your own design, and I hope that speaking up on what I believe in can help encourage anybody out there who may feel lost, confused or hopeless. Your life and well-being matters. NEVER forget or lose sight of that!
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