You're Faking It

I really need to tackle this topic. I have to start this conversation. I loathe fake, superficial people. People that behave as though they have it “all together”. Actually, I hate fake altogether. Quit trying to be deep. Forget trying to create/recreate your “image” online. Stop posting those doctored photos on IG. Also, please stop trying to have the deepest caption - nobody is fooled.

As I sought inspiration for this week, I considered what’s been happening since 2021 started and to be honest, not much has changed. Keeping up appearances on social media (and life in general) is damn hard. I personally became “depressed” (using the term loosely) when I saw all these upwardly mobile women “making moves”. No matter how strong I was, it made me feel almost like I had very little to be proud of because I did not have my own small business, every skincare brand under the sun, tons of disposable income, my own music single etc. Anyone else felt like this? For us women, it is very difficult and sometimes we may even find ourselves doing things we never thought we would to make ourselves seem more desirable to others and we actually only end up cheapening ourselves. I’m guilty too - no stone throwing from my glass house.

Time for a poll. Guys & Gals. Hands up. Who wants to admit that they’ve already made a mess of 2021? Yup, that thing you vowed to stop doing seems like it’s even more attractive now. That aspect of your personality is frankly despicable and you cannot stand it. You’re already sick of 2021 and you’re ready to drop the ball. Here’s the truth about you; you’re not real, you’re faking it. To yourself and to everyone else. Go get a reality check - you’re kidding yourself. Who are you really? Is the reason you’re not making meaningful progress because you’re unwilling to look at the truth dead in the eye? Probably. This is likely the 7th or 8th New Year in a row that you’ve tried to change, to no avail.

Anyway, in the spirit from my shorter, and perhaps less damning, post last week about losing the pressure of following NYs resolutions and instead simply committing to gradual change, there’s a bit more to say, albeit slightly different, it’s related. Perhaps it’s time to take the tougher route. Do me (and everyone else!) a favour and lower the mask. You may be scared to see what’s underneath, and that is ok. In fact, you probably know what’s there. It may be pretty ugly. Here's a fact; though you may be hesitant to ‘assess the self-inflicted damage’, God is not. In fact, He already knew what was underneath the painted on smile and the conjured up happy energy. He already knew what He’d see - and guess what, how He felt about you never changed. It never will.

Bring the mask (excuse the pun), the mistakes and the mess you’ve accumulated in the first 13 days of 2021, to God. You’re safe there. Your life is safe there. You don’t need to maintain the superficial, there’s no point. You don’t even need to explain to anyone what you’ve been hiding - it is none of their business. This is where the transformation starts. It may not feel good to you, but it is good FOR you.

This is not a rant at you, reader - it has been real for me too. The pressures of maintaining an online (and otherwise) image weighs heavily on how you view yourself. It reverses your thoughts and makes you believe that the view others may hold of you is more important than that of your Creators. After all, we interact with them all the time right? Don’t get trapped in the hamster wheel.

Trust God. As I said last week, life is a continuum - take this first step. Acknowledge your superficiality - show God your all broken pieces. It may be painful at first but it’s completely worth it. You’ve got nothing to lose but that horrible, fake mask anyway!