“I am interested in people who swim in the deep end. I want to have conversations about real things. I’m tired of talking about movies and gossiping about friends. Life is crunchy and complicated and all the more delicious.” - Amy Poehler
I am an extroverted introvert, and my girl Amy’s words really hit home for me. Part of what that means is I enjoy socializing, in doses, but I still absolutely need my alone time. Also, it means that I think small talk is the worst. To be honest, I don’t care about the weather, or the “finethankshowareyou” conversations. I cherish the moments I can have with people I love, especially in one-on-one settings. I love talking about things that matter. It is those close heart-to-heart conversations when you can really see another person, and really let another person see you. The vulnerability in that is endearing, and I’m so thankful that I have people in my life that I can have deep, meaningful conversations with, where my heart is wide open and only ever feel supported and loved. Even when we don’t agree. I hope my loved ones feel the same way when they are talking to me. Speaking of opening up and letting someone see you…I am obsessed with the human body and all of its intricacies. Well, here’s an anatomical phenomenon: We never truly see ourselves. It is biologically impossible. All we ever see are our reflections. When we look at something, it passes through our eyes and actually gets flipped upside down, and then your brain processes it and puts it back to its original state, and we see what we are looking at. Generally speaking, and blurry vision aside, our eyes do this flawlessly, and we see the world the way it is displayed. Let’s just take a second and marvel at the fact that everything you look at is flipped upside down, processed, and seen normally without you even being aware. The brain is so cool. However, sometimes I think the reflection of ourselves that we see gets flipped by our eyes, in the same way as everything else, but then when it gets to our brain, it doesn’t quite arrange itself in the correct way. Looking at other people, you can see them in a different way and see their strengths, their abilities, and what makes them beautiful and special. However, like I said, all we can ever see is our reflections, and it is not the real us. All too often we see our shortcomings, our failures, and the things that make us flawed. We don’t see that it is the size of our hearts that matter, and not the size of our jeans. We don’t see that what we think is ugly is actually what makes us unique. We don’t see that our bodies are absolutely incredible and life giving, but instead, we pick apart all the things we wish we could change. We don’t see that failures mean we took a chance. We don’t see that we would never say the hurtful things we say to ourselves to another person. We see the flaws. We are all flawed. Flaws are what make us human. Flaws are what make us irreplaceable. Flaws are what make life interesting. How boring would life be if everything were perfect 100% of the time? I can answer that. Incredibly. Flaws should be accepted. Flaws should be celebrated. I say applaud the flawed. Now, I know it’s easier said than done, and I am not going to all of a sudden love everything I struggle with, but it is something I want to actively work on. Since the reflection you see is not the real you, pretend to talk to someone else. Talk to your reflection the way you would talk to your younger sister, child, or your best friend. I bet none of us would say the negative, hurtful things we say to ourselves. We are flawed, but we are not ruined. We are human, and we deserve love. Start with yourself. Applaud the flawed. Always, Molly
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AuthorJust a twenty-something attempting to create the illusion that I have a clue what's going on... Archives
May 2017
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