By being treated in these damaging ways, the child learns that being yourself is dangerous, that in order to survive and be at least marginally accepted by your caregivers, you have to hide who you really are: your thoughts, observations, feelings, and preferences.
Other times the child decides to lie to get their needs met, needs that otherwise would be completely ignored. For example, if the caregivers are emotionally distant, the child might lie or pretend that somethings going on just to receive some attention.
And, of course, if the child is routinely attacked or rejected for being authentic, they learn to hide and pretend. In many cases, to the degree where they gradually lose connection to their authentic self and have no idea anymore who they really are.
This is tragic. However, its important to realize that, as adults, we don’t have to be afraid of abandonment anymore. We don’t need our caregivers to survive. We can endure and deal with all these feelings of betrayal, hurt, distrust, shame, loneliness, anger, and many others.
As adults we can slowly untangle all of these problems and slowly rediscover who we really are. We also can start working on trusting others who actually are trustworthy. We can become authentic again.
RARE 2PAC HD FOOTAGE: Atlanta Municipal Court, December 1, 1993
On October 31, 1993, Tupac Shakur was involved in an incident in Atlanta where he shot two off-duty police officers, Mark and Scott Whitwell. The altercation began when Tupac saw the men reportedly harassing a Black man in the street. A confrontation followed, during which shots were fired and both officers were wounded—one in the leg, the other in the buttocks.
Tupac claimed he acted in self-defense. It later emerged that the officers were intoxicated and had initiated the conflict. The case was eventually dropped when it was discovered the officers had lied about key details and were carrying guns taken from a police evidence locker.
“The bill ensures that nearly 90% of Social Security beneficiaries will no longer pay federal income taxes on their benefits, providing meaningful and immediate relief to seniors who have spent a lifetime contributing to our nation’s economy.”
“The tax cuts would add around $3 trillion over the next decade to the national debt, according to an analysis by the Congressional Budget Office. That means the U.S. would have to borrow more money to cover its expenses, requiring it to pay an estimated $600 billion to $700 billion in additional interest payments, according to an analysis by the Center for a Responsible Federal Budget.”
“Art for the most part, is about concentration, solitude and determination. It’s really not about other people’s needs and assumptions. I’m not interested in the notion that art serves something. Art is useless, not useful.”
