Are you too much, are you not enough?

A personal musing on making peace with conflicting internal and external opinions.

It’s hard to accept yourself when you’re constantly teetering between “you’re too much” and “you’re not enough.”

This is a real problem for many people, regardless of age, gender, race or creed. Usually these opinions and judgements are imposed or reinforced by society, until we give up questioning and imbibe them as our reality. Many of us unwittingly become human chameleons, making efforts not to be seen, when it's actually what we really deserve and need.

This continual adaptation is outwardly frictionless but inwardly exhausting. Even the best attempts to people-please are going to be met with at least some discontent or misunderstanding.

This isn't a game to be won, certainly not when the cost is our inner peace, self-esteem, and nature’s given sovereignty.

The beauty lies in knowing how to unify apparent polarities.

Can we be generous and kind without compromising healthy boundaries?

Can we move through life with grace and true humility, without disrespecting ourselves or performing weakness to make others comfortable?

Do we dare have the courage to express our inner selves with pure clarity, without it needing to come from defensiveness or to conquer another?

There's no shortage of free advice in this world (including this post, haha). People often tell us how we "should" be, whether it's to succeed in your career, be better in relationships, become healthier, or even how to be more spiritual. But even the most well-intentioned advice only ever tells part of the story.

The more we distill the noise and chaos of public opinion, the closer we come to uncovering the hidden, unfulfilled longing of humanity's heart... that is to Love and be Loved.

Maybe within that understanding lies the antidote.