Growth – as we all know – comes from stepping outside our comfort zones.

It is sad that we have to say this: We were conditioned as children to feel the need to hide. Yet, we are aware that to be not seen is the very essence of childhood hurt. And to heal from it requires but to be heard and seen.

While familiarity in our current state has given us a certain degree of peace of mind, the prospect of making fools of ourselves looms large. Can you relate? The anxiety we feel arises from the fear of judgment, the uncertainty of the unknown, the fear of failure, and even the uneasiness that surrounds the possible outcomes of success.

But what is this anxiety if not essentially a reflection of our ego? If we had shed more of this ego, the worry about how we are doing or what others think would lose its grip. The focus would be on discovering the joy of the process, undisturbed by external validation.

And so here we are, only getting older with the passage of time. The “right” moment eludes us, always postponed to tomorrow – a tomorrow that never really arrives, becoming a perpetual cycle, much like the promise of free beer tomorrow – an excuse to avoid confronting the reality of the present.

Yet, as we gather the courage to be the individuals in the arena, exposed and marked by the struggles of our journey, we set out on a transformative path of shedding our former conditioned selves. As we look ahead, we carry with us the invaluable lessons of our past – the trials we have faced and the growth that has shaped us into who we are today – all that has brought us to this moment.

The moment to show ourselves – completely, without hiding ourselves behind curtains, both figurative and physical.