I can plead guilty to that statement.......probably many of you can. We do it out of love, affection, fear, habit,
whatever the reason.......that loss of self-respect is profound and takes a long time to recover.
The sad thing, most everyone you know has an opinion of you, and most will freely share it with you if given the opportunity. It begins a vicious cycle, a downward spiral if you will......we give others the credit, the power to shape and form how we feel about ourselves.......and we lose who we really are.
It's ok, that others think highly of us, or not......but in the end, what we think of ourselves, our respect of self.....is what matters most.
So, so true. I find that age has helped in this matter. I really think getting used to being in my "old" skin and realizing that youth fades quickly but it is possible to age with grace. Giving time and service to others and forgetting about our egos helps too. As always, a good thoughtful post.
ReplyDeleteI still make the mistake of thinking everyone is going to hate me when I walk into a room of new people! That puts me on the defensive and it's downhill from there! It's never the case but it's something I have to remind myself not to do! Take care
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