{I’m participating in Gypsy Mama’s Five Minute Friday for the first time. It was really hard to stick to that 5 minute limit. And I may have done a little deleting, but I will do better next time!}
We are a society obsessed with reality TV. You don’t have to flip too many channels to find some reality program on. But those shows? They’re not real.
If you were to ask me if I have a problem “being real,” I would tell you no. But I would be lying. As much as I pride myself on being real on my blog and in person, I am often anything but. I like to self-edit, pick and choose those parts of me that are most likely to be accepted, most likely to be praised.
Sometimes I don’t even know how to be real anymore.
I stick the not-so-lovely bits in a dark place and hope they never come to light. I worry that if I finally muster the courage to be truly real, if I truly bare it all, then I will scare everyone away. So I keep those bits tucked away and wonder why I’m lonely.
Being real is scary. Being real is vulnerable. But being real can also be freeing, and who couldn’t use a little more freedom in their life?
I think of the lyrics, “This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine” and think that I’ve been doing an awful lot of hiding under a bushel. It’s time to let the light in. It’s time to be real.
Erin Mount 
i love this post. and i have this problem too–the problem with all this social networking and blogging and etc is that you can opt to only show the happy shiney things, you can edit your persona to look a certain way.
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(and that was renee, not bryan!)
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Well said. I find the easiest way to “be real” is to surround yourself with people who won't let you be anything less – and who want the real you, even if it is messy, instead of the fake you, even if it's shiny.
Hence why I married the man I did, have the best friends I do and go to the church I do. When I don't want to be real, they refuse to let me hide. It's wonderful and frustrating at the same time!
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“Sometimes I don't even know how to be real anymore.” – I get this. It is hard to figure out what is learning to control our emotions so we are not ruled by them and what is avoidance. It is hard to figure out how much we need to be vulnerable and let people into our lives and how much we need to turn to God with our fears and insecurities instead of turning to other people. It's tricky.
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You're not alone in the self-editing! I'm a constant editor of myself; it can certainly get exhausting! I am learning that real breeds real, and when we share a bit of ourselves with others, they share some of themselves too. Such a treasure!
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