Freedom is not when you are free to walk around. Freedom is more than that. Freedom is about how you feel about your inner life.
It is about peace, inner peace. It is about love, inner love. It is about happiness, unconditional happiness. It is about respect, self-respect. Freedom is about joy.
Just because you walking around, going to places, that doesn’t mean you are free.
You are free when you are comfortable with yourself; you are free when you know who you are; you are free when you are not afraid to go for what you want; you are free when you are not scared to stand up for yourself; you are free when you love yourself; you are free when you know what you want; you are free when you know what you do not want; you are free when you have the courage to face what you do not know; you are free when you are just you, when you don’t seek other people’s permission to live your life, to do what you love; you are free when you have the power to make your own choice.
Since we are still talking about freedom, to be really free, you MUST, according to Iyanla Vanzant, ‘Know yourself! See yourself! Accept yourself! Be yourself!
The question is, ‘Do you know who you really are? Do you know yourself? Do you see yourself? Do you appreciate who you are as a human being, not as a working being? Do you accept yourself for who you are, not for what you have? Are you comfortable with yourself? How do you feel when you are with yourself?
To quote Iyanla, ‘No matter what you may be faced with in life, know your Self! No matter what someone may do to you or against you, see your Self! No matter how many times you try and fail, or fail to try, accept your Self! No matter whose company you are in or what they have the ability to give to you or take away from you, be your Self!’
Because you matter. Because you do not need other people’s permission to do what you are capable of doing. Remember, the only person you can rely on is yourself.
The question is, ‘Do you have the courage to rely on yourself?
