The moment I re-read my previous post about What If, I realized I had gone completely off script. That post was supposed to be about being true to yourself. And I understand how that could’ve gone off the rails. So, let’s get back to the original thought process, shall we? Be true to yourself. Make decisions based on your beliefs. Where do these beliefs come from? Is it nurture? Do you believe that the sky is blue because that was GOD’s intention? Or do you understand the science behind it and know that the sky being blue is a reflection of oceans off of our ozone? Hold on, about to go off the rails—again. This is a topic discussed previously, and I’m sure will come up again in the future…to be continued at a later date.
Nurture. We are all raised in the image of our parents (or grandparents, or foster parents, or any number of other scenarios for that matter). They put ideas in our brains from a very young age about how to speak, how to walk, how to present yourself. Some of this is done unconsciously, some of it is taught with a purpose. But, your brain does pick up on things instinctively. So whether your family has realized it or not, your thought processes are being derived from what you see going on around you as well as what you are being told. It is up to you decide whether you want to follow in those footsteps or not. I believe this is the birth place of being true to yourself.
Let’s start with this scenario. (I also realize my brain processes faster than my motor skills, so I constantly need to re-read and add certain details back in). You are raised in a family that does not have a lot of material things, but enough to get by. Yet, it is a very loving environment. Your decision making process going into adulthood needs to make a determination between A: Love is enough and it does not matter what material objects I can possess; and B: I do not want to live my life without nice things, I want something better for myself. Which of these decisions could truly bring you happiness? Along the way, has your family tried to teach you to be better than them or do they believe what they have should be enough? The road you decide to travel will become your being true to yourself mantra.
Here is another scenario. You are brought up by a family living in the lap of luxury. Anything you could possibly want is simply handed to you. If you follow in your family’s footsteps, you could be set for life. But, no one in this family seems to be truly happy. You are told from a young age how to be a gentleman and how to appreciate the finer things in life. Yet, there is no joy; no loving, nurturing feelings. Because you do not know what else you could be feeling, since this is what you have come to believe is how it should be, do you grow up wanting more? If you were to experience something that brought you absolute joy, but it meant giving up that luxurious lifestyle, would being true to yourself mean that you are changing your thought process or would it not be important enough to you to step out of your comfort zone?
Being true to yourself. Is this an ideal that could actually change while traveling down your path of life? Do our goals become different at some point along this road? Are we capable of making life altering changes which could truly make our lives better? Or do we just have a skewed vision of happiness based on nurture? Nurture is a funny business. These ideals are ingrained in us from a very early age. Some of them we hang onto and some are dropped along the road as if we are littering. These nurturing ideals are sometimes hidden way back in the corner of your mind and only seem to jump out at the most inappropriate times—SURPRISE!! Nurture is something given to us unconsciously and subsequently accepted by us unconsciously. At some point you need to wake the fuck up and start making your own decisions. The only question is—do you make these decisions based on being true to yourself and your long standing beliefs, or do you blaze your own trail and make being true to yourself your bitch!!