How to Be Real

Growing up, the one thing I wasn’t allowed to be was myself.

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash

Growing up, the one thing I wasn’t allowed to be was myself.

I learned it early, and I learned it well. I also learned to adapt. While I never consciously faked a persona or a belief system, I certainly acclimated to the climate around me. Of course, bits of the real me leaked through.

A preoccupation with the environ…