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A post shared by Elephant Journal (@elephantjournal) on Jul 16, 2019 at 11:16am PDT

“Who I am, who you think I am and who I think I am are 3 different people.”

When I look at you, I see your body, the way you dress, the way you behave, and the way you express yourself.

If I know you well, I see your habits and thought patterns. When we talk, I see the way you navigate your perception and beliefs to understand what you’re experiencing. I see your sensitivity, and I know what makes you laugh.

But I don’t see you.

I know this because your perception of me is limited to the physical expression of who I am too—my clothes, how I act, the way I walk—and your observations of me.

Who I am is deeper than that. It exists beyond my thought processes, and I show up when my mind isn’t in my way.

Every day, I will show you contradictory behaviour—sometimes consciously, sometimes unconsciously.

You might call me a contradiction.

But, I am not that contradiction. I am the deeper self that seeks the truth and wades through my mental debris.

Clarity comes in moments when I don’t feel caught up in the details of my life. Joy comes, momentarily, when my inner and outer world no longer conflict.

I am not who you think I am. What you see when you look at me is my outward journey.

I am not who I think I am either—who I am has existed before I even tried to define myself through thought.