Personal Integrity

I've met a lot of people. I've spent quality time with them. These people have spanned different economic classes, cultural backgrounds, age groups, lifestyle communities, political affiliations and religions. I do this because I'm genuinely interested in people, understanding how we all ebb and flow together, and I'm still excited about experiencing life. I do it because I consider it my purpose to experience, share, and show what I've learned. I do it through composing stories and visually expressive things. It's to some degree a job, I guess, rarely paying anything and causing a lot of pain through the process sometimes. But it's a spiritually evolutionary experience, and I believe in it.

Now there's a difference between getting to know people and then surrounding yourself at the end of the day with the few you trust. People are complicated. So is life. But it's a beautiful complication.
I've learned how to balance these things, and it literally took years to figure out. Balance is essential, and who we let into our personal lives becomes a matter of integrity.

I know I can't retain any degree of class and remain comfortable in my own skin if I'm letting everyone and everything into my personal life. It's too much energy. I have to limit those interactions. This is not out of any kind of insincerity. I cherish every experience I have and every person I get to know. It's simply necessary, so I don't get pulled down into the bowels of misery and confusion. I've already been there, and I'm not going back.

I have a lot of respect for the people close to me; I'm attracted to their convictions and their courage. These are things that still mean something in a bat shit crazy world. I feel fortunate to have a small army of the best and most intelligent souls on the planet. I wish for this kind of camaraderie to spread itself around. I hope that it is.