THE THING THAT CONNECTS YOU TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE

We have this inner craving / desire to want to express ourselves in our most truest form. To act, to be, to move freely with ourselves just as we do with those we feel truly relaxed around...we wish to be this way with all those who cross our path. We also have a desire to belong. To belong to the group of majority rules you could say, to feel like we fit in, are normal, are accepted by all or most, to not feel alone. And the thing is, even though one wishes to live in the form of self-expression, they will hold themselves back, simply to belong. The thought of expressing oneself, feels exciting, free, uplifting, at the same time as it can feel too different, too weird, too isolated. For the majority of my life, I didn't express myself in a way that I truly wished to. And it was in those years that I felt more disconnected from self and from others, more than ever. I just wanted to belong and in turn, I turned my back on myself. When the time came and I started to express myself...it wasn't easy, and if I'm honest, there are still days it can feel uneasy at times too. However I've learnt and felt a connection when I allow self-expression to play. I allowed myself to step out from the back of the camera and stand in front of it. I allowed myself to feel feminine again, something I had lost for quite some time. I allowed myself to be seen, when most of me just wanted to hide. Yes, I did this for myself, but I also did it for the women I photographed. Because if I wanted them to do the same, to be photographed, to be seen, I had to lead by example. I then allowed myself to express through writing. To write whatever comes to me and share what feels right in those moments. Again, yes I did this for myself, but I also did this for that person who may also need to hear it. Because as I've found over the years, it's usually not just me who thinks what I think, there are many, and in sharing we can all learn and grow together. Learning to express myself how I see fit for me, like I said, hasn't always felt comfortable. There were many times at the beginning and even some days now, that I felt weird and questioned myself, wanting to go back to comfort. But all that would do is suppress me. There were many times I felt alone, and that maybe I was the only one with the thoughts I shared, the only one who dug that little bit deeper, thinking maybe I should just stop voicing it all, caring too much about what others thought of me. Yet all that would do is give away the power within me to grow. So now that time has passed, now that I have and will continue with learning self-expression, What I've found to be true is this. Self-expression allows you to feel more connected to self, even if this means less people around you. You feel a sense of freedom, a sense of calm and a sense of joy....this all comes from a connection with self. Self-expression allows you to feel more connected to the right people, your people, and those who get you will accept all of you, even if they don't fully agree with all you do and say, on a core level, they feel you...and with this, you start to feel a sense of belonging again. When you allow self-expression in a way that feels right...right down to your core, Your connection with yourself, the people, the world around you, will be full of quality & strength.