The naked truth...
Now, mom and dad,
before you freak out, let me offer a disclaimer: I was not the naked
one. Rest assured, I was sufficiently covered. Don't think I went off to Greece
and will come back completely changed and crazy. Because I won't.
That being said---I
will be coming home different. Or maybe different is not quite the right word
because I feel that every day, every moment I allow myself to be completely
honest with myself, I am getting closer and closer to finding who I really am.
And who I want to be for the rest of my life. I'm shedding the layers, tearing
down walls I've built to cover parts of me, ones I've built and adorned to
blend in, fit in, with the rest of the world. For a while, part
of me just wanted to be part of that cookie cutter subdivision. But
that's really not my style. I'm going to design and build my own house.
Okay, now I'm mixing
metaphors. Are we naked or contractors? Well, both. If you don't know and/or
haven't guessed, I rather like metaphors. And after all, isn't life a metaphor?
Or maybe it's a thousand metaphors? Or maybe there a thousand metaphors that
are life?
But I digress.
Perhaps it would help
to provide some context. It's Friday, September 18th, 17:23 (Greece
time)--that's 1:23 in the afternoon for all of you folks at home and
I can bet you're probably still at work (neener neener!).
Meanwhile, I'm on a
beach; Paraga Beach; in Mykonos, one of the many, incredible islands of
Greece; lying on a turquoise blue bath towel on my stomach, teeny tiny white,
gray, sandy, speckled rocks shifting and settling to form to the curves of my
stomach, knees, quads, mostly comfortable except for the one poking into my
upper left rib; propped up now on my elbows, thumbs poised above the touch
keyboard of a friend's phone (she was kind enough to share, to
give me an outlet for these words that have been stirring in my head
as the salt water droplets soak into my skin in conjunction with the sun's
beautifully warm rays); with the strange, techno-y, slightly catchy, undercurrent
of tunes coming from the dj down the beach, covers of English songs (like
"living on a prayer") drifting through the air, co-mingling with the
gentle, rhythmic lapping of the waves against the shore and the murmurs of
conversations floating from this towel, that; The same breeze that carries
these notes also carries the strands of my drying curls across my face, tries
to turn the page of another sleeping friend's magazine--trying to read past the
point she left off; the water is blue and the sky is too--so many shades that
only validate my choice of blue as my favorite color; I don't know the
temperature of the sky, but the temperature of the water is just the right
amount of cool to feel refreshing, a good compliment to the sun's beautiful
warmth.
How is this life right
now......
Now, don't be jealous,
don't click that little red x in the corner. Life's a beach, isn't it? But
really, if you have even the cracked door of an opportunity, go--go to the
beach, go to Greece. And if you can't go there specifically, take a breath
wherever you are and make the most of life right now.
Because life
is---well, just pick your metaphor. :p
Anyway, I got kind of
side tracked being in this moment at the beach that I almost forgot the
thoughts that originally moved me to move my thumbs across this
keyboard. The stirrings in my mind that could become waves on the page. That's
the hope anyway...
Go back for a moment
to the beach--reread that section again if you want, so that you can really
picture it. Are you there? Hear the waves, feel the sun? Good. Rest your head,
relax your mind, your body, close your eyes to the sun, and let it all soak in.
Now, you'll hear something or feel a slight chill or just want to reposition.
Open your eyes just a crack, turn your head, roll over, whatever---and catch a
glimpse of a different crack altogether.
To put it delicately,
this is where the "naked" part of the blog's title comes in--this is
where some beach-goers go to be freer in some senses than they usually
are.
Take notice (well,
don't look too close), but just take a moment and take a page from their book.
Don't be offended or scandalized, but there's something we can learn from these
bare beach bodies.
Think about it, when
you are naked you are just about as vulnerable you can be. There's nothing left
to stand between you and the rest of the world. There's no pretending. There's
no hiding. There's no putting up a facade, changing hats. You are what you are.
And that's what people see. Everything you've done, everything you've put into your
body, everything that's been done to you--it all shows. All your scars are
visible. But see now that the healing of those scars is also visible. And see
that when you see someone naked you are seeing someone who is comfortable with
who they are.
Had an eyeful? Hang in
there.
This kind of
vulnerability translates, transfers to who we are on the inside. Everything's a
metaphor remember?
When you bare your
true self, tear down those coverings you've put on for whatever reason, and
open yourself up to those around you, to life around you, that means you are
completely comfortable with who you are. You are showing the world flat out on the
surface who you really are. It takes courage to do that just like it takes
courage to strip down on a public beach. But there's also a similar kind of
freedom that comes with it.
Now I'm not suggesting
we all walk around the office, down the sidewalk, in the school hallways, in our birthday suits. But
perhaps there's a way we can start to strip off some of the coverings and
layers and facades we build up around ourselves.
Because even your
favorite pair of jeans won't be comfortable the whole night, especially after
dessert. And wouldn't you rather be comfortable with who you are? Wouldn't you
want the people you're close to to know the real you?
So, because life's a
beach, because there's a metaphor for everything, and because there's a certain
kind of freedom in being naked (emotionally or physically---though I'm
not quite there), take some time, go to the beach (it doesn't have to be a nude
friendly beach if you don't want it to be), and find some people, find a way to
strip down metaphorically and discover and share who you really are. At the end of the day,
that's the naked truth.
Feel the breeze. Close
your eyes against the sun. Feel its warmth. Breathe in. Breathe out. This is
life...
And now, a smattering of pictures--from the beach and from around the city. No worries, though--nothing too revealing!
ALL the buildings stick to this color scheme.
Just your typical Mykonos alleyway.
Living the beach life.
He can fly!
Loving the beach life!
I could get used to this...
View from the restaurant...
...as evening sets in
And now for the city lights to take over for the night.
right on the water
so blue!
The famous windmills
How is this my life right now????
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