AUTHENTIC

I have a confession. I am addicted to watching the Depp v. Heard trial. I know I shouldn’t turn on that live stream, I know it’s not good for me but I can’t help myself.

The idea of being authentic, being true to your personality, values and spirit, regardless of the pressure that you're under to act otherwise, seems to be at the heart of the whole sad, expensive, messy affair. Authenticity seems to be on trial.

In the trial of life, I also feel pressure to be authentic, true to myself, to be the me I was born to be. But, if I look at where this pressure is coming from, it’s coming from my mind. A mind that never stops talking, chattering, whispering, persuading, cajoling… telling me that if I could just be more authentic then my life, how and who I am will manifest in a more reliable, predictable way.

When I look at the trial, the characters, the roles they and their authenticity change like the wind, as they pursue their agenda to stay in power, in control, to look good and win.

We all have a similar agenda, yet the structure of our identity, our authenticity is too at the mercy of the wind, the wind of change. When I think about being authentic from that point of view, the effort to find, present and preserve an authentic self is a waste of time. No matter what, “s*** happens”, s*** that we never predicted, s*** that we reject, s*** that we simply do not want, s*** that makes us change who we are, how we act and what we do.  

So, in the trial of life, the authentic may win the case but the jury is still out for who the real winners and losers are.

#power #authenticself #lawandorder