Reel or Real?

I'm sure many of you have seen this quote from Steven Furtick floating around on blogs or on Pinterest.

Source: creatingkeepsakesblog.com via Sarah on Pinterest

If you don't know about Steven Furtick, he's a pastor of a pretty awesome, large church in North Carolina called Elevation, and he's written a couple of books, Sun Stand Still and Greater, which is a New York Times Bestseller. So obviously, I feel like Furtick knows what he's talking about, and is much wiser than I am, but as I was thinking about that quote the other day as it relates to my life I realized why it always kind of rubbed me the wrong way.

I think that while the quote is absolutely true, it infers that it's my fault when I feel insecure, and it's your fault when you feel insecure and so on. While I think that the way we allow people to make us feel is somewhat under our control, I can't agree that it's entirely under our control. I can't help but wonder, if more people would share their real lives verses their "reel" lives, what could we accomplish? Who could we help?

I feel a great responsibility in life and on this blog to be real versus sharing my highlight reel. Sure, I like to look at blogs full of gorgeous pictures of perfect families doing perfect things in the perfect lighting, but as much as I enjoy that, I learn so much more from the people in life who aren't afraid to be imperfect and don't hide the messes in their lives.

I couldn't begin to tell you all of the posts that have helped me feel so un-alone in mothering.

I only knew after reading some blog posts that the emotions I was feeling after Deacon's birth were probably more than typical hormonal swings, and that my debilitating anxiety wasn't something I had to suffer through.

I wept when Emily Carter put into words what had previously been a sick feeling in my stomach and a guilt that I couldn't explain.

And, I have a whole lot of messy to share. My life isn't perfect, and I can't pretend it is, but it's my life, and it's something I find worthy of sharing with others. That's why I blog, and that's why, from now on I'm done trying to box myself into some "niche" or worrying too much about being vulnerable now that I know some of my IRL (in real life) friends and family read this blog. I'm me, and I think I'm a pretty awesome person in spite of my messiness. I hope you'll enjoy reading along.