I’m a firm believer in the “two makes it true” philosophy.  If I hear something from two separate sources, then I imagine it is most likely true.  I’m also a firm believer in finding out the truth for myself.  As a result, I hold on to the “two makes it true” information until I find out otherwise.  This thought process has helped me a lot in life.  The one bit of information that it becomes cloudy on is whether or not Santa is real.  Multiple sources, mostly under the age of 5, have informed me that Santa is real.  Further personal experiences has told me otherwise.  Perhaps that’s why I do not believe in the physical presence of Santa, but the spirit of Santa still lives on in my heart.  Alas, I digress.

This “two makes it true” philosophy came to the forefront of my mind as I was reading the book
The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are.  I apologize in advance for the many times I will likely reference this book in future posts.  It’s not that it offered earth-shattering ideas, but that it reiterated a lot of concepts I learned in my years of attending therapy.  As I was reading it, I realized how the book was the second source confirming the principles I had learned through difficult and eye-opening therapy sessions.  This book is the “two” that made those therapy concepts “true.”

But better than that, I marveled at how this time I had first put to practice the information I learned in those therapy sessions.  My practice of those principles and the positive results were truly the “two that makes it true.”  So, really this book was the “three.”  Reading this book was the confirmation that those, often painful, therapy sessions really were beneficial to my growth and I’ve now come farther than I realized.  What joy it brought my heart to know that I’m learning and growing.  That change for the better is possible.  Certainly, I have a long way to go.  Don’t we all?

I saw three separate therapists before finding the one that helped change my path.  When I made the call to that fourth therapist, I expressed to her my concern about not finding success with past therapists.  Her response was, “I won’t be able to help you either if you’re not ready to be helped.”  While I still believe her to have been the best therapist out of my experiences, she was right in her response.  Previously, I wasn’t ready to be helped.  I wanted a quick fix.  I wanted the therapists to just take the pain away.  I didn’t really want to have to work at it.  I hadn’t quite grasped before that to truly be healed, it involved re-opening the wounds and cleaning them out.

I am fully aware that there are many out there that live much more secure lives when it comes to their self-worth.  I too have a greater understanding of my self-worth at this point in my life.  I’m learning that I am worth loving just as I am.  But that wasn’t always the case.  I didn’t even realize how far I had come from the woman I was 6 years ago until I was reading The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are.

I think today, more than anything, I wanted to share that it’s not too late to do the uncomfortable for the hope of a brighter tomorrow.  Maybe set aside some time today to consider ways in which you might be holding yourself back or, worse, being unnecessarily hard on yourself.  The path to bettering ourselves is not an easy one.  We have to look at the ugly and make sense of it before we can move beyond it.  Maybe that means attending therapy for some, meditating for others, or reading an inspirational book.  But I am happy to report that working through the pain can result in something beautiful.  It’s similar to that magical feeling of believing in the spirit of Santa.  It feels light-hearted and hopeful.