Centering Yourself With Integrity

We are born to “love.” However, growing up, society teaches us we are here to succeed and make our mark. We play by the rules and convince ourselves that we are superior.

While we have things to say and opinions to express, we get to a point where we do whatever it takes to become successful. We are sucked into a tornado and can’t get out of it. Everything around us, and all the people surrounding us, are here because we are the person we became in this society.

But deep inside us, there is a hole—a black hole – a feeling of dissatisfaction that doesn’t wane. We are stuck. We became a person that is not who we truly are. We boarded up all the doors and windows, and all we see is a wall in front of us. No light. No oxygen. Just us with our own self lost in our “Tenebrae” that we built.

It is not talked about because it is a sign of weakness, and in this world, there is no room for weakness. Only the strong survive. So we keep going and start doing things that can hurt others so we can stay successful. We forget our basic values. Even the most Important value that helps us to be aligned with ourselves and to live in accordance with our own original nature and who we really want to be. This is integrity.

Integrity keeps us in check—in check with ourselves, our gut and our body, mind and spirit. It is the act of choosing courage over comfort. With that comes respect for ourselves and for others, which means we limit ourselves to what can be done with no harm to others. It means we choose to practice our values rather than professing them.

Integrity brings this fundamental rule that is our guideline. We are so lost in the society game that we forget to respect our own boundaries. And, we owe these boundaries to ourselves. Having integrity is being able to not hide one’s reactions nor options. A true test of integrity is one’s own behavior when we are wrong.

If we live in integrity and know we make the right decisions, then we are not dependent on anything outside of us. We feel at peace because we know we are doing the right things and saying the right words. We surround ourselves with the right people who share the same values—and not because we have a hidden agenda to be with these people. Only when we feel at peace can we feel joy and pride in who we are.