FAMILY SESSION: Authenticity

Does anyone else sometimes just long for authenticity?

I am bombarded daily through social media and regular media, and doggone it, by even the people I meet in everyday life...

People that seemingly know how to keep their houses spotless, their children eating organicly healthy foods, while retaining a youthful glow & taut skin even over 40, exercising daily to keep their waistline trim, living fiscally responsibly AND having extra money to clothe everyone in name brand items, whilst also giving generously to those in need...to top it off...they also are having quality dinners around the table, heart to hearts each evening with each child and no worries in the foreseeable future except, "my child got a full ride scholarship to 5 Ivy league schools and we're just at our wits end knowing where they will choose!"

I sound crabby...

I don't mean to be...I truly want to be happy for people that have figured it all out...that have it all together...that don't get distracted by everything and therefore burn pancakes on the stove while trying to do a quick load of laundry so that baby girl will at least have clean underwear to wear that day (although it may be a bit damp because it doesn't have enough time to go the full dryer cycle)

I'm not good at balancing things...I'm also not a good actress...if I'm having a bad day, unless you don't want to share in my "misery", you may want to pretend you don't see me and walk the other way...it's not that I'm trying to be a negative nelly...I'm just being real...and being real for me means that I haven't seen my bedroom floor in about 2 weeks because I just keep dumping the clean clothes (praise Jesus we at least have clean clothes) onto the carpet or they get dumped there after being somewhat thrown into piles on the bed but we're too tired to put it away, so back on the floor they go...

We have a teenagers in the house and this whole parenting thing is different and I'm scared that I'm not going to do it right...scratch that...I am NOT going to do it right...I can't...I'm completely imperfect, so I suppose my fear is, "HOW badly will I mess them up?"  I can have great motives up the wazzu, but even the best intentions don't mean the "right" decisions all the time...

We've been married almost 17 years now...and we're in our 40s too...and though we are committed it doesn't mean that it's always a piece of cake or that we live with rainbows & happy talk 24/7!

WHEW...that's a lot to spew at you on a Monday!

Let me sort of "switch gears" but hopefully it will be a smooth transition into this train of thought...

Authenticity...Being REAL...Transparency...Integrity...Confidence...Connecting...

I know there has to be a level of Confidence inside one's self to be able to state to the world, "this is me...take it or leave it" and I think with that confidence comes the ability to be transparent and therefore living boldly and thus demonstrating Intregity, because decisions aren't based on what others think, but rather what is right, even if it doesn't "feel" good...

when it all comes down to it...after all that, we CONNECT...we don't feel alone...we have a sense of belonging because we link arms and walk through life together...

And that can be scary, I get it...because we can't control other people's perception of us...we try, but ultimately we can't...and sometimes being "REAL" means getting kicked in the pants a couple of times along the way...

When I took this picture of this family, I can't say that this "blog post" popped into my head, but I remember smiling and thinking, "THIS is real...this is a moment in time..."  It's hard and messy sometimes...and you feel pulled in all directions...

but, here is this family living it out loud...no pretense...just letting loose and saying, "we love fiercely, we love deeply...we go a little crazy...but we're here together...take it or leave it!"

I want to continue to challenge myself and my family...to, even if it makes us look dorky or maybe if others look at us and say, "thank good we're not like them!", live authentically...Because, I have found that connections made with others of like minds are often the most bonded & worthwhile relationships...