HidingA good friend said yesterday that she wanted to move to another city. ‘At least I’d be able to get away from X,’ she reasoned.

I shook my head and said, ‘But you know if you try to run away from yourself, you’ll only run into yourself.’

She looked at me like I was mad and said, ‘That makes no sense.’

But I have to tell you it’s the truth.

When things are too real, too painful or just too uncomfortable, we often try to run away. But what we don’t realise is those situations are part of ourselves. And you can’t run from who you are because it’s like you’re running away from you. You can jump on a plane and leave the country but your problem, issue or pain will still be with you. You might leave the ‘person’ you hold responsible behind, but if you don’t deal with the issue it will come back to haunt you later in another way.

Some of us will even try to hide from things we desperately want but don’t believe we deserve or could ever have. You might stay in a nice, dependable and well-paid job when you really want to do something that pays less but will make you happy.

Or consider the person who desperately wants to be loved but runs away from it because the thought of letting someone see all of them, with all their flaws and darkness, is terrifying. So instead they choose relationships that will never run too deep and choose to keep hiding.

We can become very good at pushing away the things we want.

It happens every day and I am no exception. I have tried to hide from myself many times.

It takes courage to be honest with yourself and face your demons. The thought of picking away the scab to see what’s beneath can be terrifying. What if we don’t like the person we find? What if we’re not strong enough?

Some people will never ‘go there’. They will hide for a lifetime because it’s easier.

And they’re right. It is easier.

But if you hide from who you are and what you honestly want, you will never be truly happy. You are a wonderful spiritual being living a human existence. That means you are here to learn lessons and expand your soul. Sure that expansion means facing pain and discomfort but the process also brings boundless joy, love and understanding.

Imagine if you could extend that love and understanding to yourself.