The title is a quote from The Perks of Being a Wallflower, which I reread on my birthday, followed by a screening that I hosted at an event space with arguably the best projector in the city of Chicago. Anyhow, I wanted to post about this deep sense of elation I have been feeling lately that is related to this feeling of really loving who I am. Perks of Being a Wallflower is a story about a young boy who realizes that others will accept, love, celebrate and cherish him just for being himself. Throughout our lives, we find relationships and communities that also foster our personal growth and allow us to thrive in being who we are and continuously express it with joy and wonderment. I love these relationships and these communities and the way that they allow for a really solid support structure.

For my birthday, my friend DH challenged me to write down everything I had learned in the past year. It was really great because it made me realize how much one thing that I have learned in the past year, which is that I love really getting into a flow where I feel like I am truly being myself in doing something that I love doing. Self-love in this sense really allows me to form stronger, deeper, and more meaningful relationships with others without being overwrought with the demands of the ego. It also allows me to stay with my joy and stay true to myself in a way that makes me feel determined not to compromise or short-change anything that I value about myself. I think one of the most important things that we can do in life, for ourselves and for one another, is to be empowered and courageous enough to be ourselves and to show others that it’s possible, fun, and magnificent, and to encourage them to be themselves too.