Evolving who we are: How I found My True Self In Nature

 Are you comfortable in your own skin and is the skin you are in truly yours? Are you aware of your true Nature: Awaking from the Slumber

It feels as though I’ve been in a deep slumber my entire life, only now waking to the reality of who I am. For so long, I didn’t know myself—trapped in illusions, asleep to the truth of my nature.

“When you stop living your life based on what others think of you, real life begins. At that moment, you will finally see the door of self-acceptance opened.”
― Shannon L. Alder

Humanity is easily manipulated into conformity. From birth, we are shaped by forces beyond our understanding, molded into what society wants us to be. Family, friends, and even the flicker of a TV screen tell us who we should become. They sell us an image, a lie dressed as purpose.

We conform because we feel we must. We live to impress others, caught in the grip of a world obsessed with materialism. In this endless chase for validation, we lose sight of ourselves. The deeper truth of who we are fades beneath the noise of expectations.

“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.”
― Oscar Wilde

This journey to discover our true selves is not easy. The chaos in our minds begins early, often during childhood. In school, we’re taught to fit in, to belong, to mirror the crowd. But in doing so, we stray further from the essence of who we are.

This section dives deeply into the layers of societal expectations and personal evolution. Let me refine it further, ensuring it stays authentic while adding clarity and flow. Here’s an enhanced version:

---

Stripped of Labels

From the moment we’re born, we’re told what to wear, what to eat, drink, and ultimately what to think.

We dress to impress, chasing trends and fads, squeezing ourselves into boxes society builds for us. What we wear becomes a declaration, a label: He’s a rocker. He’s into hip-hop. Oh, he’s got a beard and talks about peace—he must be a hippie. Or, She smokes cannabis? She’s a Rasta. It’s all noise, endlessly categorizing, endlessly confining.

I didn’t always think this way. Who I am now is the result of an evolution—a shedding of old skin, a breaking free from the mold. I was once part of that conformed mindset, as we all are. I lived in a mental glass jar, shaped by the expectations of others, molded like putty.

Subconsciously, I spent so much energy trying to impress others that I forgot to impress myself. Deep down, though, there was always a part of me yearning for truth. I remember being passionate about the environment as a teen. Now, I’ve returned to those roots, embracing the role of a guardian for the beaches and rivers of Puerto Rico.

There were always hints of who I am today, but I allowed myself to stray from that path. Layers of conformity dulled my instincts, keeping me comfortably numb.

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson

Breaking free from those layers is no small task. It’s an unending process, peeling away masks that have disguised our true selves. But who’s to say what we uncover won’t just be another level of conformity?

Perhaps the answer lies in how you feel within your own skin—not the surface layer, but deep inside. To live authentically is not to wear a mask, but to embrace the raw truth of who you are, free of labels and expectations.

I believe that these layers or mask that we wear are the shackles from our true selves.

“I like solitude. It is when you truly hear and speak your natural, unadulterated mind, and out comes your most stupid self as well as your most intelligent self. It is when you realize who you are and the extents of the good and the evils which you are capable of.”
― Criss Jami

Finding Myself in Nature

To truly find yourself, you must first disconnect. Unplug from the world, step outside the confines of your daily life, and escape the noise of your mind. Solitude is true freedom. It’s in the stillness, away from distractions, that your authentic self begins to surface.

For me, it was the solitude of nature that became my mirror. Stripped of all the external noise, I found clarity. I began to grow my own food, and in that simple act, nature became my teacher. Each seed planted was a lesson in patience, resilience, and reciprocity. As I nurtured the earth, I found it nurturing me in return, showing me parts of myself I’d long ignored.

Another turning point was quitting alcohol nine years ago. For years, I had numbed my mind, silencing the whispers of my true self with each drink. Walking away from that crutch allowed me to tune into my raw essence, to feel fully alive. (Click here to read why quitting alcohol was the best decision I ever made.)

We don’t just need nature to survive; we need it to thrive. Nature is where we reconnect with our higher selves, where we strip away the layers of conformity and remember what we are: nature itself.

Growing up in Brooklyn, nature was a distant, almost foreign concept to me. The concrete jungle mirrored my internal state—I, too, was a stranger to myself. It wasn’t until I came to Puerto Rico that I began to awaken, realizing the profound connection between self-discovery and the natural world.

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.

— Henry David Thoreau

Striving for Authenticity

We shouldn’t only aim to be our unique selves—we should also strive to be better than who we are today. Every step we take should be toward shedding the negativity that weighs us down, freeing ourselves from the burdens of self-doubt and fear. Striving to be better humans isn’t just for us—it’s for the world we all share.

The journey begins deep within, exploring the corners of our soul. It’s about uncovering the truth of who we are beneath the layers of expectations and conformity.

I’ve noticed a shift in consciousness spreading across the world. People are waking up. They’re breaking free from the boxes that have contained them, rediscovering their inner voices, and rejecting the societal strings that once controlled them.

This is something we should all strive for—to listen to that inner voice and embrace what makes us so uniquely special. Be your own person, untethered by the expectations of others.

We must have the courage to follow our own paths, resisting the detours that try to steer us back into conformity. Let go of the fear that keeps you from being yourself. It’s time to stop wearing the mask of who you think others want you to be.

Too often, we live in fear of rejection, afraid we won’t be liked, and so we shape our lives to fit the expectations of others. But the truth is, we don’t need to impress anyone. The only person you need to impress is yourself.

“When you are content to be simply yourself and don’t compare or compete, everyone will respect you.”
― Lao Tzu,

I used to live chasing material things, believing they would bring me happiness. We often think the clothes we wear or the lifestyles we choose—based on the influence of others—will fulfill us. But it’s all a perceived happiness, a story we tell ourselves while living a life of self-deception.

True happiness is found in looking in the mirror—completely naked—and loving the reflection you see. It’s about being uniquely beautiful in your own way, no matter how society views you. You are not flawed; only society’s manipulated perceptions and diluted values create the illusion of flaws.

Shallow as I once was, I now see that the only flaws lie in our manipulated minds and perceptions. We must remove the masks we wear and set ourselves free from the limitations they impose, uncovering who we truly are to experience personal freedom.

“Be yourself—not your idea of what you think somebody else’s idea of yourself should be.”
—Henry David Thoreau

I’ve learned to shed my former self, layer by layer, like the skin of a snake. I embrace what I’ve become while striving to build a better version of myself—a person free of negativity and societal constraints. Each step brings me closer to becoming the change I want to see in the world.

I love what I have become and have embraced it as I continue to shed my former self like the skin of a snake. In order to continue to build a better person and become the change I want to see the world be. Look to continue to Remove the layers upon layers of coating so that I could unplug myself from what was once known.

I Continue to go down the curved path that is my journey in this book that is life. Shed everything, as to become so positive that it will shine on to others rather than being as negative as I once was. Where as instead of leaving negative imprints, I now choose to leave positive ones.

“Everyone of us is shadowed by an illusory person: a false self..We are not very good at recognizing illusions, least of all the ones we cherish about ourselves. Contemplation is not and cannot be a function of this external self. There is an irreducible opposition between the deep transcendent self that awakens only in contemplation, and the superficial, external self which we commonly identify with the first person singular. Our reality, our true self, is hidden in what appears to us to be nothingness….We can rise above this unreality and recover our hidden reality.”

– Thomas Merton

Awakening to a New World

Looking back, deep inside, I was a beautiful, tarnished soul. I allowed the world to make me bitter, cold, and hateful. That bitterness turned inward, and I grew to hate myself. I projected that hate onto others, spiraling into depression and even suicidal thoughts. It was a dark chapter, but nature offered me a way out. (You can read more about how nature helped me heal here.)

I now realize that who I was—angry and destructive—was a mask, hiding my true self. Those layers of conformity and societal pressures had shaped me into someone I wasn’t meant to be.

Yet, if I could peel back those layers and transform into a better version of myself, I believe others can, too. Beneath the destruction, I was always a good person waiting to be uncovered.

As part of this transformation, I made intentional changes in my life. I’ve since donated my old clothes and deleted the music I used to listen to because music is another way we conform. We often adopt the sounds that our environment dictates—the music that becomes a product of our surroundings.

Born and raised in the concrete jungle, hip-hop was my music of choice. But I won’t listen to it anymore just for nostalgia, as many do. Instead, I’ve discovered music that resonates with who I am today. I’ve also embraced clothes—or the lack thereof—that make me feel truly happy and free.

In shedding these layers, I’ve found my true nature. Yet, there are still more layers to uncover. This journey of self-discovery is ongoing, and I’m enjoying every step of it, like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon.

It’s not always easy—some might feel so lost or “rotten to the core” that they think change is impossible. But it’s about striving, opening our minds, and embracing evolution. We all have the potential to become better versions of ourselves.

This isn’t just about us—it’s about the next generation, too. We must allow them to be free thinkers, to grow without the chains of indoctrination from schools, television, or societal expectations. Let them become who they truly are, not what others tell them to be.

Awareness is the key. Once we recognize the ways we’ve been manipulated, we can awaken to a new world—one where we live authentically, free from the constraints of external expectations. It’s time for us to awaken to our true nature.

“make a radical change in your lifestyle and begin to boldly do things which you may previously never have thought of doing, or been too hesitant to attempt. So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservation, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun. If you want to get more out of life, you must lose your inclination for monotonous security and adopt a helter-skelter style of life that will at first appear to you to be crazy. But once you become accustomed to such a life you will see its full meaning and its incredible beauty.”
― Jon Krakauer,

Have you found your true nature?

Is your true nature really who you are or is it a facade?

Please share and discuss below by leaving a comment on what you thought of this post down below and subscribe to my newsletter down below, follow me on facebook and instagram as RadicallyWild