Are you embracing your uniqueness wholeheartedly?

It’s easier said than done. If you are like many people, you have heard the mantra of how important it is to do this, yet have stubborn resistance to practice it.

I’m no exception. In this post, let me share one of my “uniqueness” that, for a long time, I considered as less than desirable and how I came to terms with it. My hope is that, by sharing my experience, you’d feel comfortable and encouraged to embrace your own uniqueness.

It’s almost two years ago when I contributed my post Accepting and Loving our Uniqueness at Urban Monk. In that article, I confessed how I felt about my foreign accent. I’ve felt shy about speaking up, especially to strangers, because of my accent. Now mind you, my accent isn’t too bad. Most people have no problem understanding me. There are so many occasions these day when American people have to deal with internationals that they have learned how to listen to us. (Good grief!)

Challenges in embracing your uniqueness

Still there are times when someone points out how imperfect my English is. They are not necessarily mean people who are out to put down others. Some have been my close friends. For instance, I hired a personal finance coach last fall to assist me in making a few decisions. I have known her through her blog for some time. And she is brilliant and kind. Yet at the last session, she remarked, “You might want to improve your articulation of English. Maybe you should seek help with a speech pathologist.” That felt like a huge lumber suddenly hitting me in the middle. I wasn’t prepared for such a comment. I was depressed for several days.

I’m sharing this not to blame her or other people who have pointed out my accent. I’m sharing it because I suspect many of you have had similar experiences. You certainly have a few qualities, or personal quarks, that you see as your “uniqueness”. Perhaps you cannot do certain things in the standard way, like me speaking English. Perhaps you can do something so well it stands out oddly. Perhaps your opinions are so different they surprise your peers all the time even though you don’t intend to be different. And you have received remarks that hit you and depress you.

As a result, you may have concluded uniqueness is a problem, a liability, something you must cover up so that you can be accepted in the society.

Your inner judgment is hurting you

When someone points out your uniqueness and puts you down, it’s easy to think the other person, the one who made hurting comments, is too judgmental. But I dare tell you — the biggest judgment is sitting right within you.

In my case, my judgment about my own accent was the biggest issue. Sure, I formed my judgment based on the feedback I received from others, but once the judgment is in me, it was mine, and it multiplied the pain when I received more criticisms.

If I am truly comfortable with my background and therefore my accent, if I am really embracing my uniqueness, I’d be okay even when an uninformed person points out my difference. But I’ve been secretly afraid that my accent would make me look less intelligent, less appropriate, and less worthy.

How I came to embrace my uniqueness

Something changed within me recently. I started to think I am okay as I am.

I cannot pinpoint what brought this change. I think it’s a combination of many things. The big part is having friends who like me for who I am. Blogging has helped me a big deal in this.

Another part is me dropping my other judgments. I used to have many judgments. I’m an idealist. And for an idealist, the world and the people in the world fall short. For instance, when I saw overweight people, I couldn’t help feeling, “That is so unhealthy. And there are good ways to lose weight in a healthy way. Why are you staying that way? You don’t like it yourself, do you?” I never said this, but this kind of thoughts was always within me. Not any more. These days, when I go out, I just feel close to everyone I see, most of them strangers.

Finding my voice

Have you checked my last post The Most Important Message? That’s the first time I spoke up voluntarily to the general public. Speaking with my friends has been easy. Speaking to my Akashic Record Reading clients has been fine, too, because I know they are motivated to hear what I have to say about their Akashic Records. Plus, in phone sessions, if they don’t understand something I say, they can ask right away. I can explain or spell it out.

However, letting my voice and my accent heard over the internet was a big deal for me. Kind of like volunteering to show off my arm flab on the internet. I didn’t have to do it. But you know what? I actually enjoyed making that video. I guess something is indeed changing within me. And I think I’m the one who enjoys that message of love the most.

And the surprising thing is some people seem to like my voice, including the accent. I have received comments that my signature voice helps the message to sink in. I guess it’s like a funny face may be more interesting and memorable to remember than a perfectly symmetrical model face.

Are you embracing and celebrating your uniqueness?

What is your uniqueness that you have considered to be no good? Is that judgment true? Can you –no, will you choose to embrace and even celebrate your uniqueness? It’s really all up to you, whether you want to condemn your uniqueness or embrace it. The uniqueness is there — what do you want to do with it?

Why do we want to embrace our uniqueness? Because embracing your uniqueness is the start of loving yourself as you are. And until we completely love ourselves as we are right here and now, we cannot grow any further spiritually. Forced growth is a fake growth that will burst sooner or later, like the recent years’ stock market growth and burst. On the other hand, when we completely love ourselves, growth naturally happens. Self love is the foundation of all love and life.

Love yourself, with uniqueness and everything. Not the you that you would become when you love 10 lb or when you master that skill or when you get that job. Love the you that you are now and celebrate your uniqueness.

Bonus reading: Is your uniqueness related to body image?  Check out this brilliant post Loving Our Bodies At Any Size.

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Hope you enjoy. For those of you with hearing issues, here is the transcript:

“Hi, my name is Akemi Gaines. Today I’d like to share the most important message I have about life. I’m a spiritual coach and writer so I have a lot to say, but if I must boil down everything because I just have a few minutes of your attention, this is what I’d like you to know:

You are deeply and completely loved, always, no matter who you are or what you have done or what you are doing.

If you’re ill, please know you’re NOT being punished. You’re loved.
If you’ve been estranged with your family, please know you are NOT a bad person. You’re loved.
If you’re single and lonely, please know you’re NOT truly alone. You’re loved.
If you lost your job, please know you are NOT worthless. You’re loved.
If you’re poor or even homeless, please know you’re NOT unlucky or abandoned. You’re loved.
If you’re an average man or woman, perhaps with a job you’re bored with and the rest of your life on autopilot, please know you’re NOT lazy or dumb. You’re loved.

You are deeply and completely loved for who you are.
By whom, you ask?
I call it the Source of Light, or spirits, or God.
I know some of you are taught to be afraid of God, but I tell you, God is love.

You are a unique expression in this world. The world will lose its integrity without you. You are loved for who you are.

Take a moment and listen within yourself, you can feel the wave of warmth and light.

This is the most important message I have. Thank you for your attention.

Now your turn. What’s YOUR most important message?
Speak up.
And if you post your writing or recording, please send it to me by linking to:
reallifespirituality.com/manifesto

Imagine the people worldwide sharing their life’s wisdom.”

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Cause of premature aging # 1, malnourishment

Norman Walker maintains the main causes of premature aging — which most of us suffer — are malnourishment and poor elimination.

Cooking heat destroys the vitality of foods and changes the chemical nature of nutrients in the foods. Further, Norman Walker explains how eating starch interferes the nourishment of the cells and efficiency of elimination. The large molecule of starch is insoluble in water. So they travel in blood and lymph as solid molecule that the cells cannot utilize. Instead, they stick to the wall like a plaster. Norman Walker warns the consumption of starchy foods such as grains and beans can cause liver hardening, gall bladder stones, pimples, unnatural blood coagulation, which can lead to hemorrhoids, tumors, and cancers.

(My personal understanding of this starch problem is excessive amount of starch poses a problem. And if you are like many people, you are probably eating starch excessively. But there are personal differences in starch tolerance. Some people can process more starch than others.)

He also warns against the consumption of concentrated protein such as meat. To digest concentrated protein, the body has to work extra hard — taxing the liver, kidneys, etc. The excessive workload results in accumulation of uric acid, which eventually gets stored in the muscles. They become crystals in the muscles that cause sharp pain.

Cause of premature aging #2, poor elimination

This is really the highlight of Become Younger. Norman Walker examined thousands of colon X-rays and even conducted autopsies. The colon diagrams in the book of the actual patients are horrifying. They are distorted so badly that you would wonder how anyone can survive with a colon like that. He explains how the muscles of the colon become flabby and get weighed down by accumulated waste matter. The old waste matter that are stuck in the inner wall of the colon can be up to one inch thick, he reports.

Obviously, the colon cannot function properly with this much of impacted waste. Moreover, we absorb toxins from these old waste, so the problem is not limited to the colon (such as colon cancer and stoppage) but it can also cause seemingly-unrelated issues such as depression, nervous breakdown, kidney malfunction, vision problem, sinus problem and heart trouble.

This, Norman Walker emphasizes, can be the case even when you have “regular” bowl movements. When the passage of the colon is narrowed by accumulated old waste, people actually have more bowl movements, or even diarrhea.

Raw vegetable juice and colon cleansing to become younger

What can you do to reverse the negative impacts of poor nourishment and poor elimination?

First, start nourishing the body by taking plenty of freshly-made raw vegetable juices. He recommends 2 pints (1 litter) a day or more. Other foods you eat are best raw, too. And eliminate starch and refined sugar from your diet. Ideally, eliminate or severely limit the intake of meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy.

Two, cleanse your colon by colonics and enemas. It will take many sessions to cleanse years of accumulated waste.

Did Norman Walker become younger?

Norman Walker lived up to 99 years old, according to Wikipedia, which examines his immigration and death records. Some people want to make him into a legend of someone who lived over 100 years old, but unless he lied and successfully got away with immigration office (very unlikely because he is from England, a civilized bureaucratic nation just like USA. And I don’t see why he had to do such a thing), that is not the case.

However, I don’t think this undermines his status as the expert of healthy living. 99 years old is a respectable old age, and I like the peaceful and natural way he passed, during his sleep. He is reported to have been active until that day.

What kind of raw foodist are you?

I read a lot of raw foods blogs and noticed there are many kinds of raw foodists. Some eat salad mainly. Some are big on dehydrated foods and raw imitation foods, such as raw crackers and raw nut burgers. They are certainly raw, but after reading Become Younger, I feel that the main stay of a good raw diet is raw juices.

It is amazing how much vegetables a juice takes. To make a 16 once green juice, I put in 2 to 3 cups of greens, half a head of celery, and half of a large cucumber. Juice is a concentrated nourishment. I think a lot of nutritional deficiencies some raw foodists are experiencing are caused by their reliance on salad and dehydrated raw foods.

I was so impressed with this book that I ordered two more books by Norman Walker, Fresh Vegetable and Fruit Juices and Vegetarian Guide to Diet and Salad by Dr. Norman Walker.

What do you think of his theory of rejuvenation? Please share in the comments.

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