I was taken aback to be asked this question recently. Hmmm - am I truly happy being who I am? What does that even mean? Happy-Being-Myself? I must confess that it took me a while to come up with my answer. Eventually I came to the conclusion that I am comfortable and content with who I am. I delight in being able to live out my reality and speak my truth authentically on a day-to-day basis and there are also areas in which I want to express ‘Myself’ more fully. Notice I didn’t say ‘but’… The fact that I want to connect more deeply with my values, strengths, interests, abilities and calling in no way diminishes my sense of wholeness. If anything, it complements it as it keeps me from complacency.
That doesn’t seem to be an earth shattering statement, but it is very significant. The Russian writer Fyodor Dostoevsky sure got it right when he said ‘Man is fond of counting his troubles, but he does not count his joys’. We humans seem to find it far easier to enumerate the negatives, itemise all of our perceived failings, and catalogue our disappointments, rather than simply being able to identify the aspects of ourselves and our lives that bring us joy and satisfaction.
In truth it took me years of self discovery and healing to come to the point where I could accept myself, acknowledging that I don’t need to be absolutely perfect, and finally come to appreciate the wonder of the person who is Me. As Mahatma Gandhi so eloquently put it, ‘Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony’. Yes! Alignment is something to aim for – everything lined up – values, beliefs, hopes, dreams and thoughts – all supported by our actions.
