Be true to yourself

“Something lost? A part of yourself, perhaps? That which you seek, inside you will find.” - Yoda

I saw the new Star Wars movie a few weeks ago. I enjoyed it very much mostly because it had a very spiritual, and timely, message of hope. It also had a message that the power to change anything, or overcome darkness, comes from within.

Star Wars has always been about the struggle between good and evil both in the universe and with its character's internal struggles. Some struggled more than others, like Anakin Skywalker, aka: Darth Vader. Without getting too much into it, Anakin had a strong force - of good - within him when Qui-Gon Jinn, the Jedi Master, discovered the young boy. Jinn said that the force within Anakin was so strong that he was the “chosen one”, the one they’d been waiting for to restore balance in the galaxy. And then.... Anakin turned and went to the dark side, which ultimately greatly upset the balance.

If you've watched all the movies, you know that Anakin was really tortured (internally) by the duality of good and evil that lived within him. He struggled between feelings of anger and love. Ultimately, the anger was too great and he let the darkness win. Although, deep down he knew that he was letting evil win and he hated himself for it, but he felt justified; the darkness within served a purpose. That purpose was to right the wrongs he felt were done against him and he sought justice.

Except he used his powers incorrectly.

Don’t we all?

I mean, I see where Vader came from. If people had listened to Anakin, acknowledged his pain, or had given him a chance to express what he needed to, I feel there’s no way the darkness could have won. And isn’t that how we all operate in this world? When our pain doesn’t get acknowledged we lash out. Or...we put on masks just like Vader.

Yes, I know... Star Wars junkies...that he wore a mask because of his burns, but it really is a metaphorical thing. Even in the latest movie, Kylo Ren wears a mask - and he doesn’t need one for survival - but I think he wore it to, quite intentionally, hide his eyes. He was also tortured between knowing what was right and the need to prove his worthiness. See, the eyes always tell the truth. The mask allowed him literally hide his conflicted feelings of good vs evil, of light vs dark.

Our masks aren’t as fancy as Vader’s or Ren’s, but we put them on for the very same reason, to hide our pain. Masks hide our truth, because exposing that truth seems dangerous.

I believe the reason I’ve been called to write about masks is because masks just don’t serve a purpose anymore. Our society can’t survive being as inauthentic as we have been. You’re starting to see masks being torn off. Just look at the #metoo movement as one example.

People are coming forward and speaking their truth, no matter how painful, and it’s allowing them to finally live a more authentic life - no more masks. No more pretending that everything is fine. No more hiding their pain.

Even the accused violators can now stop pretending, or wearing their own mask, and get the help they need to face their issues so they too can live a more authentic life. I also believe that we will see more and more masks coming off in 2018 and the light will begin to shine brightly, forcing the darkness to retreat.

Figuring out your truth is hard. Especially if you have a painful past. Not only that, but us humans have an aversion to showing our true selves for fear we will be judged. That we won’t be accepted or liked if people “knew the truth.” That revealing our pain make us vulnerable for attack.

Reality is....we all feel that way at some point and you need to know that talking to someone is the only way to feel less alone. It's the only way to understand that while your problems feel horrible and insurmountable, you aren't that special....everyone has problems. You need to own your truth (your pain, your story, your sorrow...whatever you want to call it) so you can work through your issues.

Your truth is the core of who you are. It is your pain. It is your story. And that core is lovable, no matter what you might think you’ve done not to “deserve” love. It's time to take off the mask and see how wonderful life is without that burden weighing you down. It's time to be true to yourself!

The lyrics in Ziggy Marley’s song, “True To Myself”, sums it up perfectly:

"True To Myself"

Life has come a long way since yesterday, I say

And it’s not the same old thing over again, I say

Just do what you feel and don’t fool yourself, I say

‘Cause I can’t make you happy unless I am, I say

Got to be true to myself.

Got to be true to myself.

Got to be true to myself.

Got to be true to myself.

Day in and day out I’ve asked many questions, I say

Only to find the truth, it never changes, I say

If you don’t deal with it, it keeps killing you little by little, I say

Call me selfish if you will my life I alone can live, I say I say

Got to be true to myself

Got to be true to myself

Got to be true to myself

Got to be true to myself

I don’t care if it hurts

I’m tired of lies and all these games

I’ve reached a point in life no longer can I be this way

Don’t come crying to me, I too have shed my share of tears

I’m moving on yes, I’m grooving on well, I’m finally free

Got to be true to myself.

Got to be true to myself.

Got to be true to myself.

Got to be true to myself.

-Ziggy Marley

To start the process of being true to yourself you first must recognize the little lies you tell yourself and others. I know there is a force within you that can change everything. I believe in you.

May the force be with you......

As ever, and Namaste.

Kathy