Do you value the truth? Would you like it if people told you the truth, even when it was difficult for them to say it? Many people will say that they value the truth, but when confronted with it they will do everything they can to escape it. They will get angry, run away, cover their ears, attempt to bamboozle the messenger or even shoot the messenger. I know, because I've done many of these things.

If you don't value the truth, then you are caught in a trap of short-term thinking. You prefer that people give you platitudes, administering painkillers instead of the bitter herb which will cure you, and at the end of your life, your reward will be a heavy heart filled with regrets.

If you do value getting truth from others, do you also value giving truth to others? When you're on the spot, can you bring yourself to say what's in your heart? How much pain might be avoided, if a friend has the courage and resolve to say the right words at the right moment - be they positive or negative.

How much suffering can you save the world, through so many consequences and misunderstandings, by saying the truth, with compassion, gently or forcefully as the moment warrants, leading those around you to a more fulfilling life, whenever they're ready to consider the pearl that you have offered them. How many relationships could have been saved if a partner was honest when it counted - instead of when it was already too late?

I made a commitment years ago to tell the truth, and many years before that, to accept the truth, and though I have failed, many, many times, I've also avoided the feeling of wishing I had said what I had felt, many, many times. Don't leave things unsaid. Don't deny the world your gift. What is within you is worth more than all the gold in all the mountains, because what is within you has the power to make real, lasting change in the lives of others around you, and as one domino falls, it gains the momentum to push over greater and greater dominoes. Piece by piece, we change the world.

Truth-telling, like many personal qualities, is like a muscle. The more honest you are with yourself, and with others, the more your capacity to handle truth and tell truth expands, and therefore, the more truth shall be revealed to you - that is to say, the more you will embrace what was in front of you all along.

When you achieve a certain level at this skill, you will start to notice that people might react somewhat unusually. They will freeze in their tracks, astonished that you have said what they always wanted to hear, yet never expected to hear. They will weep in your arms, because in a few words you have unlocked the pain that they have been carrying for so long, revealing the treasure that was always within them. All these things and more are possible.

Accept the truth. Tell the truth. Live the truth.

You are loved, always.

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About me

My name is Kurt Robinson. I grew up in Australia, but now I live in Guadalajara, Jalisco. I write interesting things about voluntaryism, futurism, science fiction, travelling Latin America, and psychedelics. Remember to press follow so you can stay up to date with all the cool shit I post, and follow our podcast where we talk about crazy ideas for open-minded people, here: @paradise-paradox.

Some other cool posts

Here are some other posts of mine to check out:

Automation: An age of unseen prosperity
Choose Liberty, or Choose Domination
Economics lessons from an alien 👽 A true science fiction story