Living My Truth

What does it mean to live your truth? I posed this question to my students about a week before we left for winter break. As with most assignments, some took it seriously, others did not.Nevertheless, I heard some though-provoking responses and was encouraged by what I heard. I had a few students ask me what the question meant. I wanted authentic responses so I asked them what it meant to be truthful and go from there. Many students said living their truth meant living for themselves and staying true to their beliefs.

Now that 2016 is a couple of days old, I felt the need to revisit that question and to answer it for myself. What does it mean to live my truth? It means that I finally move past my poor decisions,hurt feelings, and negative attitude so that I can forgive myself, and strive to do better. It means that I stay true to who and what are important to me. It means that I am going to let go of the ideas others have about how I should life my life and live it in the way that is best for me. I couldn't be more thrilled and scared about listening my inner voice and following my truth. It means I will have to embark on some pretty major decisions and stick to my convictions no matter what happens.

For years, I have told my students to consider their dreams and do what is necessary (work hard in school, research your career path, etc.) to reach those dreams, knowing I am not even close to living my own dream of being a writer.

Life has had a way of forcing me to put my aspirations on the back burner and I can say that for a very long time, I have not been living my truth. I almost spent all of 2015 not doing any personal writing. A lot of my avoidance had to do with adjusting to my new normal of motherhood, working full-time, maintaining a relationship, and preparing for marriage. I almost convinced myself that writing was not my talent and I should just give it up. Though I scoured writing and freelance writing websites and resources was minimally encouraged, it just wasn't enough for me to pursue it.

Being a mother, wife,and an educator has taken top priority in my life these days. While those roles are a part of my truth, I have to work on getting back to me. I have gotten lost in the shuffle of roles that benefit others in my life. What do I enjoy? What do I believe? What stories can I tell? What new characters can I introduce? What about my life can I share with others? What new things can I discover about myself?

In 2015, I hope to get to know myself again and see how far my talents and my experience can take me.