Have to side with The Great Dane on this one. I’ll add that it is astonishingly common, stepping outside daily to participate in The Simulation, to feel that there are mandated expectations to live up to. Not just mandated behaviors, but fulfilling the expectations to be the model of the person that they would prefer you to be.

Eleanor Rigby put on a face that she kept in a jar by the door. Who exactly was it for? I’m not entirely sure who all the lonely people were and why she thought she owed them anything other than her authentic self!

Authenticity…

I’ve carried on quite a bit about this in recent years. My views, however, are evolving as time passes and with more thought. There has been additional input. It’s too lovely a day to dig too deeply but there will be more thoughts on this forthcoming.

For now, how close are you, when you leave your home for work or for socializing of any type, to your authentic self? Do you have a solid self-definition that you believe to be the truth? Are you still trying to sort that out? Does it even matter to you?

How often do you hide or even deny beliefs that you hold very dear just to get along or not offend someone else, maybe so they will like you?