Let Your Truth Be Your Lighthouse

I think often of my truth, how do I live it, speak it, and never ever hide it again. I wonder how the best way to share it is. I grew up surrounded by people that loved shoving their “truth” right down your throat. I never wanted to be that, not for myself, not for anyone else. I know I have messages to be shared, love to be given, and a perfectly imperfect life to be living, yet I struggled so much with what that looked like. I stuffed so much for so long, I feared once I opened the gates I would just word vomit everything over everyone. No one wants that, ever. So how do I live my truth in a way that makes my foundation firm but also allows me to share my light with others. Lighthouse, that’s how.

Lighthouses are so underrated in my mind. Most of us are aware of lighthouses but in a outside, respectful appreciation way. Most of us have no idea what a lighthouse is for. Does a lighthouse care? No, it does not. It shines, whether others know why or not. Lighthouses know its worth, know its purpose, and knows its light shines for a reason. Its easy for others to dismiss the lighthouse, when you find yourself safe on land, you don’t care if the light shines. So why am I a lighthouse? My truth is mine, its my firm foundation on a rocky cliff. My truth is my anchor into this earth and no matter the storm, I can and will stand tall. My truth is my light, it shines for a purpose. It keeps my path illuminated and in some moments, guides others safely home. Lighthouses don’t care what others think, they don’t get distracted by flashy lights on the boardwalk or new and fancy buildings built around it. They just stand tall and shine, this is what I want from my truth.

There are many times in this life when we encounter storms. Some are mild, inconvenient, and they are gone as fast as they arrive. Some storms are relentless, the waves crash over us again and again, cold and unforgiving. It would be easy to retreat in these times, find higher ground and warmth. Its easy to forget the beauty of your view when a storm rolls in, how quickly we forget the calm waters and sparkling beaches the second the dark surrounds us. Lighthouses don’t. As a matter of fact that’s when they shine, the storms are their purpose, their fuel. They stand tall and welcome the angry sea, no matter what comes at them, they were built to withstand it. As were we. We were put here to enjoy the view, absolutely. We were also put here to weather the storms. To accept them, to stand strong in them. To learn, grow, and shine. It really is our choice though, do we shine or do we hide?

So often we want to “live our truth” and do so by being as obnoxiously loud with it as possible. We spend more time making others see our truth then we do knowing it ourselves. We lose sight of what our truth even is. The minute it isn’t understood, believed, agreed with, or even questioned, our first instinct is to change it or hide it. This is when we shine! How do we forget that? There is great beauty sitting in the sun drink in hand, but even more so in choosing to shine when others would run. So how do we do this, how do we shine in a storm? So much of this is knowing our truth. Knowing it is for us and can’t and won’t be compared to anyone else. It’s incredibly freeing to live your truth, it’s easy to want to share that freedom. To make your truth be true for everyone else. Not very lighthouse of us, is it? When the storm rolls in, and the waves are a hundred feet high, and the fear of drowning takes over, that light saves us. Slow and steady it turns, letting all lost and battered ships find their way to shore. Not every ship needs the lighthouse, some even choose to ignore it altogether. That doesn’t mean the lighthouse is wrong, doesn’t mean its light isn’t important, it just knows its truth and keeps on shining. Those meant to find it always will. I know the storms are scary, the unknown and cold waves try so hard to take you down, its easy to turn your light downwards and focus on your own feet. Let your truth be your foundation, no matter how hard the storm is you are meant to shine. Shoulders back and head held high, I promise your truth is bright enough, all on its own. So here I stand, I have my waves and the times that I worry my light is too bright or more often, not bright enough. I just have to let my journey be my anchor and my truth be my light and together they shine. Whether your lighthouse feels like its shining from a tropical island or the coldest rockiest cliff, know it’s meant to shine there. Don’t look for where you wish you were, know you’re where you are meant to be. Just shine, you never know what ships you’ll bring home.