We are all born into the world naked, cold, and afraid. Everything has changed now that we've ditched our old life. Our environment is different. It's scary, but we manage to grow up and survive the trauma of birth. If this is so, then why did society find it necessary to treat birth like it's a bad thing? Why is it so wrong to be different?

It has become an incredibly horrific part of our culture to lie to everyone around us. Everyone lies. Everyone has their reasons. Whatever yours is, is no one else's business. What is important is figuring out why we are so uncomfortable with ourselves that we cannot dare to be different and to be ourselves. The world we are growing up in has taught us that individuality is like a death sentence. To be yourself means that you'll be the outcast and no one will ever treat you like an equal. It is perfectly normal for all of us to feel a need or a sense of belonging. We crave connections and relationships. This is okay and perfectly natural. It's not okay to be someone that you're not in order to feel like you belong to a certain group. It isn't okay to drown yourself in your insecurities so much that you lie to everyone around you in order to feel secure. Then again, why would anyone push someone to the point that they feel like they won't be loved for being themselves? These are equally as horrifying to think about.

Lying is tiresome. Once you start a little white lie, it continues to grow whether we realize it or not. One lie becomes two and two become 10. It's a vicious cycle of stress and dishonesty. We become so frantic that the world will reject us for being the beautiful people that we are. Maybe everyone will leave us in the dark. Maybe they'll embrace us and love us regardless. It doesn't matter what the world thinks. What matters is you. You have to escape your own personal hell in order to find peace. Imagine a spider. This spider created a web to trap its prey. What happens if the spider slips on his perfectly spun web? He's trapped. Maybe he dies. Perhaps he even becomes his own prey. I'm sure these are things we think will happen if we tell the truth and embrace who we are. We forget that maybe the spider can untangle himself and survive. We forget that we can survive. There is freedom in the truth. There is rest and clarity in the truth no matter how bad the outcome. One way or another we will find a way to survive that change. Unraveling our lies and shedding that weight allows us to be born again. We may be naked and cold again. The most wonderful feeling is stepping out into the light and embracing our beauty and individuality one step at a time. I'm free to be me. Be free to be you.