You Are Okay Just The Way You Are, Don't Forget That

I found this picture on my Timehop app from 7 years ago:

It actually made me quite sad. I could feel those same raw emotions of hopelessness that radiated from those few words I had written 7 years ago.

I was so insecure, and my self-esteem was just about non-existent at that time in my life. I wanted so terribly to be a carbon copy of what I thought everybody else wanted. I hated who I was, and I just wanted to fit in as that person that I THOUGHT everyone WANTED me to be. Can you relate?

What I didn’t realize until very recently, in that situation, I would have been a fake version of me. I would have been untrue to the core of who I am. And STILL, I would have been miserable.

I wouldn’t have liked my fake persona ANYMORE than my current self. I would have been playing a part, a miserable part.

The real me would have been locked away, by that false version of me that I had created for myself. That inauthentic me would have made damn sure the REAL me was buried deep down, in chains and shackles, never to be allowed to surface. Do you ever feel that way?

What a miserable existence that would have been!

It has only been in the last few years, I’ve learned to like and appreciate my quirky self. I’m weird, and I let my freak-flag fly high. I don’t have the time, the energy, or the desire to be anybody other than who I really am.

I try not to think about, or CARE what others are going to say or think about me. If I want to dance like a fool at a wedding, by damn it, I’m going to dance like a fool. If a want to wear a swimsuit on the beach, even though I’ve gained substantial weight, by God, I’m going to do it!

You know what? Odds are, the people I’m so worried about hating on me, either don’t notice how weird I am, or they are so insecure with themselves, that they are thinking about their own flaws and shortcomings.

In actuality there is probably nobody really paying me any mind at all.

We all have insecurities. We all have flaws. We all worry that we aren’t good enough. It’s just a part of how we are wired. Turns out, I’m not any different than that person who I’m so scared is going to think I’m weird.

Yes, you will find those few trolls who hate life, and make it their mission to break you down. It’s sometimes hard to take their constant assault at your expense, but you have to just let it go.

You aren’t the problem; it’s them. Those trolls have a horrible existence, and they feel extremely inadequate themselves. That’s the entire reason they do what they do. They are so miserable, they have to break down others.

Just let it go. Be uniquely YOU, don’t let anyone steal that from you. Then, go find your fellow freaks and geeks that are going to lift you up and love you for who you are.

Life is too precious and too short to be scared of people. You don’t have time to worry about whether other people are somehow superior to you.

I know, I am an introvert, so I get it. Sometimes it’s hard. But there is NOBODY that should have that power over you. Don’t let anyone steal that joy that should radiate as confidence from your core.