I feel that with all we see going on in our world today, it is important to bring up the topic of being true to yourself! While I believe it’s true that everyone wears a mask when doing certain things, the idea that you always need to be your most authentic self is never more important than now. You wear a different mask when you are with your friends than when you’re with your grandparents, but for the most part, everyone in this life is just trying to be happy and figure out how to get to that place of ultimate truth. For certain people, happiness comes from ordering late night Dominos, but for others, it's a lot more complex than that.

Being yourself is a very tough thing to do for everyone. Think about it, have you ever changed your appearance for a boy or acted differently around someone so that they would think better of you? There’s no denying it, we’ve all been there. What we all need to realize is that there is no point to faking it. It’s not worth it to pretend you are something you are not, because we all know this is not going to bring you the happiness that you deserve. Everyone has the right to feel comfortable in their own skin, however, that idea seems to be under attack these days.

This past week, the Trump Administration revoked protections for Transgender students to use the bathroom of the sex they identify with rather than the sex they were born with. This leaves us all wondering to what extent are we actually allowed to be ourselves? Should our comfort be dictated by a person who does not even know us? How could that be right? As an outsider looking in on the situation, my thought is that this is absolutely not okay. This ban is not just what it seems on the surface, it sends a deeper message. America is supposed to be a place where people can grow and learn and be whoever they want to be. Everyone should be able to choose what feels right to them, becoming the person they want to be, deciding how to live their most authentic life and this action by the Federal government throws that ability into limbo. The decision is now given back to the states and each state will decide how to protect their people. But the question remains, how can this be right and why is the thought of a person being their most authentic self so scary to other people?

So, at this really important time in our lives, it is imperative to remind people that being true to yourself is still the right choice! Don’t let other people try to bring you down, show them you will get right back up, you will persist and you will fight back! You will be so much happier once you realize that being yourself is the only person in this world that you would want to be (other then maybe Emma Stone). So sit tight, because it’s going to be a long ride, but being true to who you are will always be worth it!