Connecting to Your True Self

Not too long ago, I felt broken and lost. I went through difficulties in my life that left me feeling like a shell of the person I used to be. I went through my days with a smile and tried to be as upbeat as I could while wanting to run away from it all and disappear. I had forgotten who I was or what I wanted. If you had met or seen me during this time, you wouldn’t have guessed.

All of this changed when I saw women’s portrait photographer Sue Bryce at a photography convention. I didn’t know who she was and hadn’t planned on seeing her. But I did and it changed my life. When I saw her portraits of women, something awoke in me and I just knew this is what I wanted to do. I suddenly became the person I used to be. The self that used to pursue what she wanted, not thinking about the consequences or possible failures. I had never done studio photography before but did what I needed to set it all up and took as many classes as I could on posing. And then I just did it and realized I could.

I see photographing women, especially moms, as part of that journey of self discovery. Whether or not you’ve been through difficulties, many moms feel lost. It’s the very act of being a mother, of putting yourself last to take care of your children, that leaves us feeling lost and disconnected from who we are. I have the same conversations on the school playground with other moms. We talk about how our kids are getting older and how they don’t need us as much anymore. We talk about going back to work but not knowing what we want. Many of us are reluctant to go back, want something different or more fulfilling. But we are afraid.

I see all these moms and I see me. I see a sliver of light inside myself and she is starting to show. She is buried in there somewhere. I had just forgotten about her. I believe that all of us have a TRUE self. It is our HIGHER self. It is the self on our best days and the self we aspire to be. She’s in there. We just have to be able to see and remember her. This is what I want to give other women. I would like you to go on this journey with me. I want to show you that you true self is still in there and you can draw strength from her. It’s a way for me to heal myself because I am battered and don’t want to feel this way anymore. Come on this journey with me* and let me show you who you are.

Featured image from Pixabay.com