I'd Rather Have the Truth, No Matter How Hard
When you say words of deep truth, and you do it clearly enough, then those words will resonate with people. On some level, people will know in their bones that what you're saying is true.
The problem is that most people respond to that kind of resonation by pushing that truth away, sometimes to the point of vilifying or even trying to destroy the person who said it. Because most of us don't want the truth when it's hard. Most of us hate it, when the light of truth points toward something that we don't want to know about.
And that's just as true of most of the people in this group as it is about anyone else. Except that that's a truth that you don't want to hear. You want to lie to yourself and tell yourself that you want the truth, no matter how hard, because you like how it sounds. You like the idea of being a person who lives that ideal.
But underneath that self-story, the truth is that most of you haven't surrounded yourselves with people who tell you the truth even when it's inconvenient or hard or socially untoward to do so - people who will tell you the truth even when it'll piss you off or hurt you. No, the truth is that you've avoided, and will continue to avoid, people who point it out when you're being stupid or self destructive. You've avoided, and will continue to avoid, people who fail to give you the standardized, whitewashed niceties that we're all supposed to give each other in response to all of the other standardized, whitewashed niceties.
The truth for most of you - based on looking at your actions and your choices - is that the people who you've consistently surrounded yourself with are the people who never say anything but nice things to you. People who point out your strengths but never your flaws. People who agree with you and believe the same basic things that you do. People who have rarely if ever confronted you with a truth that was even remotely difficult to hear.
That's who most of you really are: You're not a person who wants the truth, no matter how hard. You're a person who wants the truth, *except* when it's hard or painful or critical or judgmental or anything else that's even remotely difficult. And if you take an honest look at the people who you've chosen to connect with, then most of you will see clearly that what I'm saying is true. But most of you aren't going to take an honest look at the people who you've chosen to connect with - because that would mean looking at a hard truth, and none of you want to do that - not when there's an easy lie that you can believe instead.
The problem is that most people respond to that kind of resonation by pushing that truth away, sometimes to the point of vilifying or even trying to destroy the person who said it. Because most of us don't want the truth when it's hard. Most of us hate it, when the light of truth points toward something that we don't want to know about.
And that's just as true of most of the people in this group as it is about anyone else. Except that that's a truth that you don't want to hear. You want to lie to yourself and tell yourself that you want the truth, no matter how hard, because you like how it sounds. You like the idea of being a person who lives that ideal.
But underneath that self-story, the truth is that most of you haven't surrounded yourselves with people who tell you the truth even when it's inconvenient or hard or socially untoward to do so - people who will tell you the truth even when it'll piss you off or hurt you. No, the truth is that you've avoided, and will continue to avoid, people who point it out when you're being stupid or self destructive. You've avoided, and will continue to avoid, people who fail to give you the standardized, whitewashed niceties that we're all supposed to give each other in response to all of the other standardized, whitewashed niceties.
The truth for most of you - based on looking at your actions and your choices - is that the people who you've consistently surrounded yourself with are the people who never say anything but nice things to you. People who point out your strengths but never your flaws. People who agree with you and believe the same basic things that you do. People who have rarely if ever confronted you with a truth that was even remotely difficult to hear.
That's who most of you really are: You're not a person who wants the truth, no matter how hard. You're a person who wants the truth, *except* when it's hard or painful or critical or judgmental or anything else that's even remotely difficult. And if you take an honest look at the people who you've chosen to connect with, then most of you will see clearly that what I'm saying is true. But most of you aren't going to take an honest look at the people who you've chosen to connect with - because that would mean looking at a hard truth, and none of you want to do that - not when there's an easy lie that you can believe instead.
