Intimacy: Vulnerability, Honesty, Attachment
When we envision the world we want to see it often is imagined from the third person. We see people interact in ways that bring us joy or seem equitable, problems are muted. Other times we envision the person we hope to be, but this is often envisioned form the second person. We are able to observe ourselves moving in a way that we currently do not. The problem with these fantasies is that they are too impersonal. If we are picturing the world from the third person we are not a member of it. If we are picture ourselves from the second person then we are not the one who is living the dream. It is far more profound to sense the future from the first person place of actually experiencing it. This closeness might seem trivial but it is the base for our ability to strive towards realizing these scenarios.
The same goes for our faults. If we are unable to live with the essence of our vices than we can never learn how to move towards our virtues. What comes with this proximity to ourselves are revelations that can truly change the way we perceive ourselves and our actions. Self-awareness is essential for self-correction. It is not enough to simply envision a new world, but we must instead try it on.
Among other things we will cover this month will be our personal truth, not the one that we share, but the one that we don’t. Learning to be honest with ourselves is of paramount importance as a step in creating the lives we want to lead and the world we want to see.
Of course, after we are able to open up to ourself we may want to open up to others. We will discuss relationships as well. Letting people into the experiences we have can me profound and scary but if we have the courage to do so and the resolve to recover from being hurt then we have a much better shot at creating interactions we want to have.
Through the next few weeks we will be investigating the phenomena that keep us from looking deeply into ourselves and also what keeps us from sharing those parts that we think are not worthy of sharing. I hope you will stick with us, get up close and personal, as we dig into the underbelly of our own minds and hearts. What you find may surprise even you.
Best,
Maceo
Founder, Citizens Of Culture
