Being Real in 2021
As we go through our lives, many of us spend years hoping and trying to “become” something, whether wealthy, beautiful, healthy, or successful. We think that these achievements define us, that once we meet these goals, we’ll be who we are meant to be. But the truth is, we are already who we’re meant to be, deep inside–and the only thing we have to become in this life is our real, truest selves.
For decades, I allowed my way of life to be all about work. The path I took was straight up the corporate ladder, but I knew my story was meant to go in a more meaningful direction in my heart. And until I found the courage to leave my job and make room for change, I wasn’t ready to follow my truth of becoming real. Or finding real love. I wasn’t prepared to accept the call of helping others to heal and get in touch with their faith. I wasn’t ready to write my book and share my story with the world.
Once upon a time, I had a vision, a burning desire to spread the message of love that I found in my “little girl” ordinary way by sharing my miracles. These are things that happened to me: Nothing made up; there is no fiction here. I’ve received so many signs of divine providence in my life, and I’m committed to helping others hang on to hope and recognize these signs in their own lives, too.
This blog is my launching place.
We all have a launching place, a moment that moves us to begin our journeys of transformation. Sometimes, these moments are painful–but your wounds can become pearls of wisdom, and the reward is a love we never dreamed possible—a love of self, most important.
On his website, Dial Hope (daily faith-based messages of encouragement), the Reverend Joe Albright posted the following excerpt from the classic story of “The Velveteen Rabbit” by Margery Williams that speaks to this journey:
“Real isn’t how you are made,’ said the Skin Horse. ‘It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.’ ‘Does it hurt?’ asked the Rabbit. ‘Sometimes,’ said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. ‘When you are Real, you don’t mind being hurt.’ ‘Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,’ he asked, ‘or bit by bit?’
‘It doesn’t happen all at once,’ said the Skin Horse. ‘You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t often happen to people who break easily or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out, and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real, you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”
It’s true: By the time we become real, we might seem, in some ways, a little worse for wear (take a peek at my wrinkles and waistline!). But as the story says, that doesn’t matter. What matters is that at last, we are finally alive. Through connecting to the divine love in all things, we open ourselves to the abundance of our Creator, who will always find intimate ways to speak to us. We just need to learn how to listen and bust a move.
Reverend Joe Albright ended his post with this prayer:
Let us pray: Loving God, we want to be real–to the people around us. We want to be loved deeply. Smooth our sharp edges and give us the courage to risk being hurt. Help us to provide deeply of ourselves and to love others with all we have. And in that process, may we experience love and grace abundant. Amen.
May peace and the love of God be with you this holiday season.
Happy New Year!
Geraldine
