We've developed defenses
for protection because we have felt the need for protection from the
abuses of others, parents on occasion, bosses, spouses, even strangers.
And in certain situations, our defenses served us well for a time.
However, they have taken their
toll. Hiding behind them for long makes them habitual, and we move
farther and farther away from our center, from the woman each of us
needs and wants to be.
Exposing who we really are
invites judgment, sometimes rejection, oftentimes discounting.
It's a terribly hard risk to
take, and the rewards are seldom immediate. But with time, others
respect us for our vulnerability and begin to imitate our example.
We are served well by our
integrity, in due time.
Letting others see who we really
are alleviates confusion, theirs and ours.
We no longer need to decide who
we should be; we simply are who we are. Our choices are simplified.
There is only one appropriate
choice to every situation -- the one that is honest and wholly
reflective of who we are at that moment.
