What's the Best Compliment You've Ever Received?
An axe yielding goofball in the wild
A few months ago, I had the pleasure of attending a two-week permaculture course in the middle of Portugal. By the end, I’d learned how to ferment lemons, turn sheep manure into compost, plant and care for trees, propagate succulents, build a raised bed, and—most importantly—embrace my authenticity wholeheartedly.
Sure, I’d had my fill of porridge, scrubbing dirt from my fingernails, and sneaking off to the compost toilet without attracting an audience. But I would miss waking up in the middle of the night to pee beside my van under a blanket of stars, plunging into the natural pool during breaks, and, of course, the incredible people I’d met.
On the final day, people left at different times. Since I had my van, I took my time saying goodbye. When I reached Maarten, a kind guy from the Netherlands, he hugged me, then paused, searching for the right words. His warm expression gave away that he was about to say something special:
I don’t think I’m the only one here who feels this way, but your presence allows others to be fully themselves because you’re so authentically you. Thank you for that.
It’s not every day you hear words like that. I was flabbergasted.
In my youth and twenties, I spent a lot of time criticizing myself, comparing myself to others, keeping myself small, numbing insecurities, and doubting my strengths. But in the past few years, I’ve invested time in learning not to give a chuck about others’ opinions.
How? By prioritizing my own joy, peace, and health—and embracing my authentically weird self.
At the permaculture course, this looked like:
Suggesting we build period-friendly compost toilets after struggling with them myself
Being the first one on the dance floor at our pizza party, and
Proposing we start a metal band called Sheep Shit (inspired by the fierce group photo seen below)
Sheep Shit 🤘
It doesn’t always go over well, but by staying true to my quirky, silly side, and honoring my boundaries, I not only filter out misaligned people and situations thus experiencing more inner peace but I also inadvertently give others permission to let their own freak flags fly. How about that!
Of course, it was easier to be my oddball self among fellow permaculture freaks—not so much in more conventional, ‘matrix-like’ settings. But now that I know the impact it can have (thanks, Maarten!), I’m curious to see how deep my weird well can go.
Pretty deep apparently.