Let me introduce you to your dark side…
Though you’ve probably already met.
Say “hello” to your dark side. You know the one I am talking about.
This is the voice in your head that doesn’t just tell you all of the things that you do wrong, but the voice that tells you aren’t ever really going to change anyway.
This is the voice in your head that doesn’t just tell you that other people around you are better than you are, but tells you that you really don’t deserve better anyway.
This is the voice that makes you doubt yourself… It’s not the one that makes you pause to be careful in your execution, but because it tells you, you’ll probably fail at it anyway.
This is the voice in your head that questions whether anyone wants to hear your story… the one that tells you that you are just like everyone else… or probably not as good.
This is the one that tells you - you are not worthy.
Now, some of you may be reading this and saying, “I don’t have that voice.”
Or possibly, “my dark side voice is not nearly that dark…”
I would argue we all have that voice… what varies is how often & how clearly we hear it… and most importantly, how well can our LIGHT side negate it.
The most difficult people I know - would likely argue they don’t have that voice… but their interactions with the world would dictate otherwise.
When you don’t realize you have that voice… it’s possibly because you’ve become that voice. It’s the only one you hear, so you don’t know the difference.
If you are not happy… your dark side is talking.
If you are angry… your dark side is talking.
If you are scared (unless its for your physical safety)… your dark side is talking.
If you are defensive, close minded, ego-centric, judgemental, anxious, arrogant, unapproachable…
Say “hello” to your dark side…
I think its super important to accept that we all have a dark side voice. Because when we do a few things happen…
We start hearing it more - and are able to acknowledge it as a “voice” instead of mistaking it as a feeling about who we truly are…
We start hearing it more - and are able to rationalize with it, argue with it, and simply disagree with what it is trying to tell us…
We are able to ignore it - but not without acknowledgement… Ignoring our dark side voice without accepting it - makes it such that our behaviors and reactions are influenced by it, without us owning that. Ignoring our dark side, while acknowledging and accepting it allows us to observe and check in with our behaviors and reactions to make sure they reflect more who we want to be…
Yes, we all have a dark side. And, those who do not acknowledge it, and there are many…. (in fact, I think most people don’t) have their lives influenced in dark ways without being able to address it… or affect it…
I am not proud of my dark side voice.
I don’t like my dark side voice.
But, I hear it clearer and clearer everyday…. and it helps me grow.
It helps me get clearer on what I want to believe and hear about myself.
It helps me to own the behaviors that it encourages, and hold myself accountable to them.
And, thus, it helps me to engage my LIGHT side… and have it join in on the conversation.
How often do you “check-in” with your dark voice and engage it in a conversation deliberately?
How often do you engage in a candid and real conversation with your anger, with your insecurities, with your anxiety, with your depression, with your dark side?
I don’t do it enough…
I’m embarrased that my dark side voice still has as much to say as it does…
But pretending that it doesn’t… won’t make it go away.
It simply makes me aware of how very badly I need my light side… my spiritual side… It makes me clearer that the only way to feel the light of my being… the only way to embrace the “IS” of my life… the only way to find the courage to step into the greatest possible love and the most beautiful version of myself…
I must invite my light voice into the conversation…
Because, in the silence of my own mind… when the voices rest…
I feel the light and love of my being…
I know at my very core - that we are all LIGHT and LOVE…
It makes the word “enlightenment” make more sense to me.
As with all concepts in harmony… life happens in the moment… and we have moments where our dark voice sets the tone and others where it doesn’t. Harmony is about setting the tone for our moments DELIBERATELY and in the direction of our WANT…
Joy, harmony, is about moments where you tap into and see and feel your own light… and shine it on yourself and on the world. It’s the stuff that makes your dark voice cringe and fade away…
Now that you have been introduced to your dark voice, work to remove it slowly and thoughtfully from your conversations.
It’s what life is all about…
in harmony,
Nestor