For many, this is a difficult time in their lives.

It is a period of redefinition.

We are coming face to face with who we really are.

We are finally still long enough.

We are finally alone.

We finally have no choice but to face how we have been living life and seeing the dissonance between what we do and who we really are.

The truth is, we have let our roles define us. We have exhausted ourselves in an effort to fulfill those roles.  We have become almost inseparable from those roles. When asked who we are, we are quick to say that we are teachers, students, parents, wives, husbands, children, etc…

Many can’t answer otherwise. Our identities are all wrapped up in those roles. It is painful to consider that we have lost ourselves. We spend most of our lives building and pouring into those things.

For a lot of people, including myself,  when they can no longer do those things or are in danger of losing those roles, we feel lost, empty, confused, and unsure.

It’s hard to find your way beyond that.

I can’t tell you how many tears I have shed and that I am still shedding.

The work only starts when we get alone, dig deep, go back to basics  and  redefine who  we are apart from those things that have taken center stage in our lives

The work is cumbersome.

This is a journey I am on now.

Some days I am exhausted and lost. Other days I start to see glimmers of who I am. I become reinvigorated and excited. I start to feel a sense of freedom and hope.

Self-discovery is a process and not an easy one. I believe it will be worth it.

There are blessings in every unfortunate situation.

Conditions and events in the world today are unfortunate, but I believe that there is a lesson and a blessing that will come out of this. There is something for each and every one of us.

I encourage you to take this time, a time when you are separated from those roles that have defined you and rediscover who you are apart from those things. I think you will be pleasantly surprised by what you find. If not then you know have the raw resources you need to build yourself into the person you always wanted to be.