Own your truth

Much of the dialogue about truth and honesty with children centers around being honest with others and telling the truth.  While those values are highly important to cultivating safe and nurturing relationships, another aspect of truth telling is being comfortable speaking our own truth, which ultimately leads to a life of authenticity and fulfillment.

Our truth is different from our opinion.  Our truth is about how we feel and runs deeper than a judgment or perspective on a certain situation.  Our truth is that little voice inside of us.  It’s  that internal compass that knows our true north, so to speak.

The other day, I caught my daughter and our neighbors playing in our backyard.  I caught them trying to climb over a fence in our yard and immediately put the kibosh on their little plan.  When I spoke with my daughter later I asked her why she made that choice.  As children tend to do, she blamed the other children and said “they told me to do it” . This was the perfect opening for my next question which was “was there a little voice inside of you that knew it was wrong?”  She looked up at me with her big eyes and whispered yes and then gave me a hug.  It prompted a healthy discussion about listening to that inner voice and reminded me of one of my favorite poems to share with kids:  It’s called The Voice by Shel Silverstein.

“There is a voice inside of you
that whispers all day long,

I feel that this is right for me,
I know that this is wrong."

No teacher, preacher, parent, friend
or wise man can decide

what's right for you - just listen to
the voice that speaks inside.”

While speaking with children about being honest in their conversations with others we also want to remind them that the most important person they need to be honest with is themselves.