Nobody really tells you what it costs to be real.

Not just quirky or different, but I mean true, you know, like true to your voice, true to your values, true to your own rhythm, the rhythm of your spirit, there is a price to that.

You know, we all feel it.

We all have been there.

You feel it in those small moments when you walk into a room and speak from the heart and the air just shifts.

Everyone's looking at you like, whoa, we'll invite this person.

You know, some people lean in, others pull back.

Some stay silent when you hoped that they would clap.

And then some people ghost you when you really put your best self forward, you know?

And then you start to realize being yourself is not always met with celebration. Sometimes it's meant with discomfort, with distance, with misunderstanding,

even from the people you thought would always understand. And then it makes you question like,

it makes you wonder if you should have said less

showed up differently smiled more toned it down you know i'm sure we've all been there

but the realist truth that i've learned along my journey is that's why i love living life

it's just a journey to expand and learn more about ourselves

and reflect. You understand? But what I've learned is, yes, being yourself, it does cost

something. That's why everyone doesn't do it. But what many don't realize is being someone you're

not, that costs you everything. You can perform the part, you can play it safe,

you can blend in perfectly at that party, but there's always a party you that remembers what you

buried, what you muted, what you sacrificed to be chosen, to be picked. And I don't care,

no amount of external praise will ever silence that

internal ache of being out of alignment. You can climb a mountain, be at the top of that

...