There is this, to my mind at least, beautiful expression in English: 'stay true'. It means to be faithful to one's belief, to one's group of people, to oneself. Although still connected to the concept of truthfulness, it is more an issue of self-honesty than of not telling lies to others.
The opposite of 'staying true' is not 'fibbing', 'lying' or 'deceiving'. Rather, it is 'losing yourself.'
Horribly revealing is the fact that, in most cases, people have a hard time staying true to themselves. It is not often a situation that arises out of conscious deviousness (which, contrarily, would actually be staying true to the individual's dishonest character), it is more a matter of forgetfulness.
We forget who we truly are.
How does such a thing happen? How can we forget who we are, forget ourselves? I guess it is an offshoot of the mixture between curiosity and desire: once we discover something we want, we become so embroiled in its observation, we get distracted. There are, quite simply, too many other important things out there. Moreover, focusing on oneself is supposedly a negative trait, a mere step away from personality flaws like egotism and selfishness. I can think of many, certainly pressing, matters I should put forward in my list of priorities right this very minute. Matters so pressing and transcendent, in fact, that they would undoubtedly relegate my heart's desires to suitably dark recesses.
Lonely, cold, forgone, our heart's desires will eventually fall asleep, get covered in dust, dressed in gauzy cobwebs, till the urgency of their yearning abates, till the heart itself shrinks. Then, everything will jar into a standstill. In the silence, so alien, so void, suddenly a soft rustling will draw the attention of the self. There, barely awake, huddled, we will once again find the truth of our soul, blinking uncertainly in the light of myriad new possibilities...
I can think of many things I should do; worries to deal with; plans to put into action. So, of course, I have turned my back on all of them for a few minutes. I have given myself time to breathe a bit, to write this instead. First things first.
Writing, you see, is my Truth.
