Day Fourty Five: Pretending

I'm perfect. I've got it all...great marriage, beautiful well-behaved children, dream job where I make so much money I get to spend it on my highly sought-after lifestyle. I'm a girl's best friend. I'm smart as a tack with charm that will make you wanna take me home to meet momma...

...NOT.

"Sometimes the truth just sounds different..." -Almost Famous

I'm beautifully flawed. I'm married to my best friend, even though at times we get lost in the muddle and forget who we are to each other. My children are beautiful people and I work hard at doing everything I can to encourage and support them and be the best mommy I know how to be. They are sometimes well-behaved, and sometimes not, but I love them and discipline them and love them some more. I was the oldest child, and I still act like I am even though my siblings are all adults and it drives them crazy. I have a lifestyle that nobody in America would find envious, but that's ok...it's not forever and we're in a place of growth right now that I know we'll cherish for the rest of our lives. I can't say that I've ever had a dream job, but hope to some day.

When we're pretending, we're not growing. We're in denial. We're lying to ourselves, we're lying to those we love, and everyone sees through it. The first selection above was what I wanted the world to believe....what I wanted myself to believe...until I realized that I was kidding myself.

And it was exhausting.

Be real. Be honest. Be beautifully flawed, and a work in progress. The first step isn't to put on our running shoes to take a walk. The first step is a long look in the mirror and a heart-to-heart with ourselves. We must change the psychology inside of our heads and our hearts to change. We must move from denial into acceptance. We must stop pretending.

Thank you, Steph, for reminding us of how it begins.