Positivity // Authenticity (and the future of this blog)

January 27th, 2013 - filed under: Furthermore » Inspiration

Oh Photo Booth, why you be flippin’ my books around?


Last summer I picked up a book called Bright Sided: How Positive Thinking Is Undermining America. It was an illuminating experience, to say the least. The author explores a lot of ideas that had already been bothering the back of my brain, things that just don’t jive with the current conventional Internet wisdom of “Practicing Positivity” (which I, myself, was promoting).

Happiness,” the modern meme goes, “can be yours if only you learn to banish all “bad” thought, cut off ties with “negative” people, and work hard to fill your head with only “good” things.” Essentially, think positive in order to be positive.

And that’s what I tried to do, for years. But when I look back through the archives in this blog, when I read my old entries and then contrast them against the whole-life experience I was having when they were written, I see a disconnect. And, I see in myself some seriously unrealistic expectations of my own humanity. It makes me sad.

Because I feel like I was engaged in this endless cycle, a desperate grasping at happiness, that went something like this:

chasing chasing chasing - catching! - losing – chasing chasing - catching! - losing – chasing chasing . . . and on and on.

From the outside (on the blog) it probably appeared that I was “happy”, because when I did manage to capture those moments, I seized them – almost frantically – and then wrote about them, made Love Lists about them, and generally tried to get maximum efficiency out of each and every one.

Because I knew that just as quickly as they came, they’d be gone.

Practicing my positivity. Chasing chasing chasing. That is not happiness. Happy isn’t something that’s running away from you! Happy, if you have it, is right there when you wake up in the morning. And chasing? That’s what you do when you’re deeply, deeply unhappy, and maybe you don’t even know it.

What is it that makes me deeply unhappy? Well, my 18-year-old self had already figured that out, and I should have paid closer attention. Because countless times I’ve laughed as I told the story of how I graduated from high school, decided I had to be a “grown up”, dyed my hair a normal color and started wearing trendy clothing and got a super straight-laced job. And within 6 weeks, I was miserable. I was so depressed! So I up and quit that job, shaved my head to nothing but fuzz and unpacked all my weirdo clothes, and whattaya know, I was back to feeling great and groovy in no time.

So what makes me deeply unhappy? Trying to be something that I am not.



These days I’m no longer caught up with chasing happy. And I don’t really “practice positivity” anymore, at least not in the way that I used to. Because these days I’m much more concerned with being authentic than I am with being positive, and I’ve learned that for me the most important thing is to never deny my feelings, whatever those feelings may be.

So when I feel sad, which I do from time to time, I don’t label it “bad” and try to banish it. Instead, I jump right in. I put on meloncholy music and I write sentimental stories and I generally just embrace it. I tell my friends, “No thanks, I’d rather stay in tonight,” and I spend some time alone with my sadness.

And you know what? It feels good. It clears out. Whether it’s sadness or anger or hurt or envy, honoring the feelings lets them move right through me. Letting myself feel just exactly what I need to be feeling, makes me happy.

Here’s a really great story about authenticity:

Last spring Waits started a co-op nursery school. At first he loved it – the very first “drop” day I gave him a big pep talk on the way in, and when it came time for me to leave, he pointed at the door and said “Yeah, Mama go.” I had lots of [private] tears, but he had none.

But about 2 weeks in, everything changed. He became distraught when I would drop him, it was like he had a delayed reaction to our separation. The other parents (it was a co-op remember, so all the workers were parents) encouraged me to leave him even though he was upset. And I did leave, and they did what most caring people do when confronted with a child in distress: redirect. It’s what everyone teaches and everyone does, and it certainly seems to make sense at first, except . . . EXCEPT, that when you prematurely discontinue a child’s feelings, you actually deny their completely valid emotional experience. And emotions don’t just disappear. They hide – deep.

So Waits never really did get over my leaving, and most days when they couldn’t calm him down, the other parents would call me and ask me to come pick him up. It got to the point that by our last month at co-op, I didn’t even try to drop him. I was basically paying to work there, since the only time Waits attended was when he accompanied me on my shifts.

Fast forward to autumn and I enrolled Waits in a real preschool. On our first drop day I explained to the teacher about the delayed separation. And just the same as before, he was totally fine when I left him that day. For the first few weeks he was happy, until one day . . . “NOOOOOO MAMA DON’T GOOOOOO!!!” And it was happening all over again.

Now, I chose this particular preschool for many reasons, not the least of which was their very radical approach to childcare. And I trusted the teacher (an old friend, actually) very much. She encouraged me to leave him, and so I did.

When I arrived back at school that afternoon, I stepped out of the car and the first thing I heard was my baby wailing. He had cried the entire time I was gone, she informed me. She was calm. “We’ll try again tomorrow.

The next day it was the same, he screamed when I left (heartbreaking) and wept the whole time I was away. His teacher was enthusiastic “He cries, and we talk about why he’s crying. He’s really good at articulating his sadness. This is great!” It was hard for me, but I trusted her. And so it went on. Every single day.

For a week of crying.

For two weeks of crying.

For – nope, one day it just stopped.

Like magic. Overnight it all ended.

Because see, in this school Waits had been allowed to really feel his big feelings about me leaving, and he was offered a safe space where he could experience those feelings completely. To explore them. And when he realized that I would always come back, and that his teacher was there to love and support him, well, he was able to release those big feelings.

These days Waits wakes up every morning and asks “Is it a preschool day?” because it’s pretty much his favorite place in the world.

Waits needed to be authentic. He was SAD, and he didn’t need to try and “be positive”. He needed to feel his sadness all the way. That’s how he got to the other side of it. And that’s authenticity, brought to you by a 2-year old. So now I’ve learned that when Waits is upset, I shouldn’t try to “cheer him up”. Instead, I pull him onto my lap and hold him close and tell him, “I know, that’s so hard isn’t it? That must feel awful, we can take as much time as you need.” It’s all part of Unconditional Parenting, and watching it work – the amazing way that allowing authenticity can transform this child, well it got me thinking about myself.

So I’ve taken a page from unconditional parenting and applied a sort of “unconditional selfing”. It’s been life changing.



Allowing my own authenticity is one of the best things I’ve ever done. Trusting myself and making difficult choices – sometimes very difficult choices – is not easy. But it feels A-freakin’-mazing. And in all those years I spent “practicing positivity”, I never experienced the sort of sustaining self-love that I do now.


I yam what I yam.”
– Popeye


The truth is that most days I wake up with a smile on my face and I feel excited to get out of bed, because I genuinely love my life. A year ago, I never thought I’d be able to say that and mean it. My life – my self – is a complicated, incredibly human, and sometimes messy thing. It’s definitely not traditional and it doesn’t fit nicely in boxes. But I think it’s beautiful. And by truly accepting it just exactly as it is, I’ve finally found my Happy.

So moving forward in this little web space, I can promise you one thing and one thing only: my authentic self. And that’s scary for me, you know? Because what if you don’t like me?!

I’ve even had people – pretty much everyone actually? – tell me that I should continue to censor, keep the blog always! pure! positive! because that’s what people want. But I don’t think that’s true. I think people want real. Aren’t we all just looking for something real in this world?

Over the next few weeks I’ll be sharing a series of posts that will catch you up on everything that has happened in the year I’ve been away. Shit will get real. Because I’m not going to bother glossing over the difficult stuff. Not anymore. I’d just rather be me.

And my real life is mostly happy, and most of the time I am really positive. But sometimes I’m not, and sometimes I’m scared, and sometimes I just don’t know what to do with myself. And that’s okay too. At least, I hope that’s okay with you. I guess we shall see.

So there you go. With a dash of trepidation . . .

see you next week.

  • http://twitter.com/saraandcompany Sara Howie

    I just saw this! Weird is right!

  • Sam

    Firstly, I’m so very glad you are back and better than ever. I’ve truly enjoyed reading your blog. You’ve presented so many wonderful and alternative ways of life that I would never have been exposed to without you.

    Secondly, and hear me out before you yell at me, I’m glad you’re not happy. According to a study cited in the Atlantic, “Happy people get a lot of joy from receiving benefits from others while people leading meaningful lives get a lot of joy from giving to others.” It argues that happiness is selfish. You, who are clearly such a wonderful and giving person, have instead found your meaning in life.

    Your struggles may have made you unhappy this past year, but it sounds as if it was for the better. “Having negative events happen to you decreases your happiness but increases the amount of meaning you have in life.” On behalf of the rest of the internet, I’ll selfishly admit my happiness for you in finding your meaning. May we all be so lucky. Welcome back :-)

    Ref: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/01/theres-more-to-life-than-being-happy/266805/

    ~Sam~

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  • Scaredofeverything

    This is perfect and I couldn’t agree more with being authentic. Sadness can be a gift, even though it hurts and it’s hard and it makes a lot of people uncomfortable. I will leave you with one of my favorite poems.

    “This being human is a guest house.

    Every morning a new arrival.

    A joy, a depression, a meanness,

    some momentary awareness comes

    as an unexpected visitor.

    Welcome and entertain them all!

    Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,

    who violently sweep your house

    empty of its furniture,

    still, treat each guest honorably.

    He may be clearing you out

    for some new delight.

    The dark thought, the shame, the malice,

    meet them at the door, laughing,

    and invite them in.

    Be grateful for whoever comes,

    because each has been sent

    as a guide from beyond.” Rumi

  • Scaredofeverything

    This is perfect and I couldn’t agree more with being authentic. Sadness can be a gift, even though it hurts and it’s hard and it makes a lot of people uncomfortable. I will leave you with one of my favorite poems.

    “This being human is a guest house.

    Every morning a new arrival.

    A joy, a depression, a meanness,

    some momentary awareness comes

    as an unexpected visitor.

    Welcome and entertain them all!

    Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,

    who violently sweep your house

    empty of its furniture,

    still, treat each guest honorably.

    He may be clearing you out

    for some new delight.

    The dark thought, the shame, the malice,

    meet them at the door, laughing,

    and invite them in.

    Be grateful for whoever comes,

    because each has been sent

    as a guide from beyond.” Rumi

  • http://bonzaiaphrodite.com/ Sayward Rebhal

    That is beautiful, thank you for sharing. =)

  • Cass

    After nearly 25 years, I’m learning to love myself because I’m learning to love my sadness. When you mention that you’ve learned to acknowledge your feelings – “no thanks, I’d rather stay in” – that really resonated. And loving who I am, even sad angry me, has made me feel more peaceful and content than pretending towards happiness has. Cheers to authenticity, and the courage to live in it.

  • Gena

    I love that book.

  • Nikki

    THANK YOU FOR POSTING THIS!!!! I’m so glad you found a great path and are doing so much better. For 20+ years, every health problem I’ve had has been blamed on being a vegetarian. OCD-level fear of germs when I was a teenager? That was because my brain wasn’t developed properly on a vegetarian diet (ie, I must be really stupid – even though I was in Honors classes… Go figure that one out!) Screwy period in my 20s? I need to eat meat to fix it. All this bologna that Western medicine doctors tell me. You have inspired me to finally get around to seeking an alternative medicinal route. THANK YOU!!!!!!!

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  • shaun kelly

    brave woman! fearless post…the universe smiles through you brighter than ever today..and that light, when it hits others, like myself, reaches into the heart and transforms some of the pain into tears and leaves behind seeds of joy and inspiration….many thanks my favorite rebhal

  • Amanda

    Dear Sayward,
    I just read all of your catch up posts (in backwards order, of course), and I was moved by your authenticity. You are truly inspiring. I am so happy you are back. It was a lonely year without you. Even though we’ve never met, I often find myself telling stories about you to friends. Letting them in on great recipes or beautiful photos you’ve taken. Your new life approach will draw in more readers. We all want the best for you, Damian, and Waits. You are loved.
    My aunt is going through a similar situation with her husband and two little ones. It breaks my heart, but one must be true to oneself.
    Thank you for your honesty. Keep on keepin on!
    Love,
    Amanda :)

  • Kelly H.

    FABULOUS! This is such great food for thought…resonating quite profoundly for me as I too try to practice being positive most of the time. I do believe there are times when we must force the better energy…when putting on a smile just might make the difference in ourselves and others even when we aren’t really feeling it…but I know we also must honor our need to feel other emotions. It’s always a delicate balance of moderating our emotions with our surroundings and knowing when we need to sit with something negative to discover the root of it…

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  • http://meshell.ca/ MeShell

    I feel you on this.
    I think the most difficult and liberating thing is to just be honest (to both yourself and others)

    Now you’ve given me some more reading material. :)

  • http://www.facebook.com/tara.rae.noland Tara Noland

    I needed to hear this. Thank you for sharing. I believe I just may be turning over a new leaf! Well, not new – old, actually. The old, original me. And that’s okay. You are beautiful!

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  • SJ

    So as I cried in the shower this morning I thought “I need to read Sayward’s posts about her divorce and how the hell she dug out after that” no lie, I literally thought that. I’ve never been technically divorced but had some big life changes/break up’s and after the latest disappointment I just feel… I feel all the feels and don’t know what to do with them. I have this and a few more posts open from around this time in the blog, and I just want you to know that 4 years later, you are still touching people BECAUSE you are authentic. I cannot than you enough. But I will say again, thank you, thank you, thank you. It’s kinda bad ass to contrast this post with what you just posted :-) THANK YOU.