FINDING OUR INNER FREEDOM.
I have often asked myself What does it truly mean to be free? What does it mean to be free and to break free from all of my own inner chains? The chains that restrict me, and the ones that cause me to doubt my abilities.
The truth is, I don’t believe that there is one set answer. I believe that Freedom looks different for everyone. But even though it looks different for everyone, it is still something that we can all achieve.
I believe that the reason that we ever lack freedom is because we have attached ourselves to a certain belief. A belief that is probably not true, but a belief that has stuck with us. Maybe we don’t feel that we are good enough, we don’t feel that we are good looking enough, or maybe we don’t feel like we are worthy enough.
Well, as long as we keep telling ourselves that, we will never be free. The minute that we start to believe in ourselves, and the minute that we start focusing on what we have instead of what we are missing in life, that is the minute that we will be free.
How I define freedom is probably very different than how you define freedom. It comes down to my own beliefs in life, and my focus to achieve these beliefs. So here is what it means to me to truly be free.
My freedom means being able to wake up every morning and loving the body that I am in. No shame, no guilt, and no feeling like I need to look a certain way for anyone else. No more looking in the mirror and telling myself that I need to lose five pounds or that I am not good enough. My appearance does not and will not define my worth. But my beliefs and actions do.
My freedom means being able to work for myself instead of working for “the man.” Don’t get me wrong, I love my job, and I am blessed beyond measure to have it. But at the same time, I realize that I am also pursuing someone else’s dream instead of chasing my own. When I start pursuing only my dreams instead of someone else’s dream, I will be one step closer to freedom.
My freedom means traveling the world and experiencing a life full of nothing but new places, new adventures and life long memories. There are many places that I want to see. The world is ours, and it is ours to embrace every part of.
My freedom comes from having a good relationship with food. I work hard every day, and have made many strides in my battle with food. But I would be lying if I said that I didn’t stress about it at least a little bit on a daily basis.
My freedom means conquering my battle with depression and anxiety. No more gloomy days, no more days where I have to close myself off so that I don’t take my anger or sadness out on others, and no more days where my chest feels like it is going to explode.
My freedom means helping others to live their best life. In order to live our best life, we first need to accept our struggles. Hey, we all have them. As you can see, I have many. But it shows that I am human. It shows that there are things in my life that I need to work on, and it gives me motivation to wake up in the morning. Plus, it gives others someone who they can relate to.
My freedom means living with positivity. Life is too short to live with negativity. The day that I started focusing my life on positivity and doing what I can to become a better person each and every day, that is the day where my life started to turn around. And it turned around for only the better.
My freedom means living with no fear. Who cares if I make mistakes because I decided to take a chance. We all make mistakes, and we are going to make many on a daily basis. If we do not take chances in life, we are never going to experience true independence and freedom. So, I guess what I am trying to say, is bring on the mistakes!
My freedom mean being me. Continuing to challenge myself, growing as a person, loving the person that I am becoming, and following all of my beliefs. If I can live my life for me and be proud of the person that I am, I know that I will be free.
What does it truly mean to be free in your life?
Michael Bonnell
10/17/2018
Previous Post: Regaining Happiness and Positivity In Life
What Does It Truly Mean To Be Free? was originally published in The Ascent on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
