~Shemeka Michelle
So often in times past I’ve danced for the world. I think a lot of us do and sometimes we don’t even realize it. We get so caught up in being a good wife/husband, mother, father or friend that we begin to define ourselves with things that really aren’t who we are. Sometimes I wonder if we really know who we are. This holds especially true for women. So many times when women are asked to describe themselves their answer goes a lot like this “I’m a wife, mom, woman of God, sister and friend who loves doing things for other people”. Does that really describe who you are or is that a list of ways that you dance for the world?
So who are you? What is it that you like to do that doesn’t involve catering to anyone but yourself? It is my opinion that many of us who claim to have such high self-esteem and self-worth really don’t have it because we don’t even know who we are. If we did, describing ourselves wouldn’t sound like an audition for an upcoming role in a movie. If we really knew who we were, we could define ourselves without describing just the role we play to others. So who are you?
How often do you allow what others think to shape what you say, how you feel or what you believe? How many times have you held a laugh because someone else didn’t think it was funny? Or you held back a tear because someone else would think you were too sensitive? How many times have you worn a hairstyle that didn’t look good on you just because it was the in thing to do at the time? Why are we such people pleasers failing daily to please the person that matters most….us! Now I know someone just missed the whole point because they disagree with my last point by saying “the person we should please the most is God”. This is true depending on your beliefs and I also think you aren’t being true to God when you aren’t true to yourself.
We have been programmed into thinking that if we don’t constantly put others first, we’re being selfish. I totally disagree. I believe that if you take the time to love and be true to yourself, you become a better person who can then be more beneficial to those around you. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not talking about the self-centered person that maliciously walks all over others to get what they want. I’m talking about the person who nurtures themselves in such a way that they live with an inner peace that overflows.
So who are you? That question can only be answered when you remove all others from the equation. If you took the time to focus on yourself, what would you see? If you were your only audience in this dance of life, would you give yourself a standing ovation or would you want your money back? Don’t do yourself and others a disservice by being a puppet controlled by the strings which are the opinions of others. In other words, life is a dance but dance for you. Real living only comes when we dance naked and stop dancing for the world!