V

A reason (for doing something or not) having a sound basis in logic or fact, is Valid.

Such reasons are well, grounded, justifiable, rational and sustainable. They are eternal and objective. Their impact in the long- range is benign and desirable. You may have a hundred reasons to stop you for doing something; you need just ONE Valid reason to do it.

Those who have a ‘why’, can bear with almost any ‘how’.

~ Viktor E. Frankl

A Valid reason would stand the test of time. It can blast mountains out of your path, throw bridges over chasms, catapult you airily over quagmires.

This reason is untameable like the wind, vast as the ocean, always like the sun. Its pull is like that of the moon to the tides. It just is; an imperative not to be disobeyed. You may ignore it and turn your back to it. You may wish it away because it demands excruciating effort from you. You may pretend it isn’t there but elephants in a room never walk out by themselves. They sit, unmoving and final, until you do something about them.

The inescapable reason is that you possess your own North Star. It will shine, whether you concede its presence or not.

To acknowledge its presence makes you feel emotionally exposed and vulnerable. Your North Star moves you deeply, you can’t deny it. If you were rash enough to allow its existence, it would take over you life. It would  go all the way down to the core of you, grab your heart in its hoary fist and slap it on your sleeve. The thought freezes you in horror! Who wants to live like that!? You don’t!

Truth and authenticity are for a chosen few. Ordinary people like you can’t go chasing rainbows. You have responsibilities to fulfill, duties to perform, family to nurture. You can’t afford to confess to your North Star. Moreover, who is someone else to decide what garb your authenticity should wear?

You are already living a very wholesome, productive, responsible and authentic life- thank you very much! Who are they to tell you otherwise? Oh, and how do you know all the North Star business isn’t pure bunkum? God knows it sounds woozy enough to stink of mental institutions! Pooh!

If you think dealing with issues like worthiness and authenticity and vulnerability are not worthwhile because there are more pressing issues, like the bottom line or attendance or standardized test scores, you are sadly, sadly mistaken. It underpins everything.

~ Brene Brown

To allow a vision to unfurl its vibrant canvass behind your eyelids is to open yourself up to pain. What if you run after your vision and never catch it? What if you catch it one day and it drops from your nervous hands, breaking into a million shards? How will you pick out those shards from behind your tender eyelids? Who wants that kind of pain? It is better to pretend that the alluring, twinkling thing you see in front of you is your North Star.

There is just one fly in the ointment though. By ignoring your North Star, you will have thwarted your soul’s agenda. You will have laid all its careful plans awry. The soul doesn’t take kindly to such interference. It will never let you live in peace. As Ayn Rand said:

Pain is not a Valid reason (for stopping). Nor is fear.

 

Authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It’s about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen. If you trade your authenticity for safety, you may experience the following: anxiety, depression, eating disorders, addiction, rage, blame, resentment, and inexplicable grief.

~ Brené Brown

Soul is about authenticity. Soul is about finding the things in your life that are real and pure.

~ John Legend