Sienna: In Search of Her 'True Self'

By Norma Barnett

This book will take you on a psycho-spiritual journey in hope of finding your ‘Soul’ so you may live peacefully and harmoniously with your ‘True Self’. This book is exciting because it provides a road map to trace you back to your origin, to find out where you have detoured. Exercises are included for you to explore and u

• Language: English
• Publisher: Stratton Press
• Release date: Mar 13, 2020
• ISBN: 9781643459356

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Acknowledgments

Writing this book has been a journey I started long ago but encountered some challenges. However, given my belief in finishing what I start, I pursued. I must first thank God for enabling me, and, secondly, my husband Robert for supporting me throughout the many late nights. Thanks also to my daughter Chantelle for reading and correcting my manuscript, and to my sister Cindy for sharing her knowledge of short story writing.

Special thanks to my mother, who prayed for me daily, and my granddaughter Imani and Tyra for their artwork of Sienna. I also give thanks to PageMaster for their assistance, ideas, and corrections.

I hope all my readers will enjoy their experience of this journey and be aided in their desire to find their true self.

Preface

I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

—Psalm 139:14

David, the great poet of the Psalms, attuned with his creator, declared, I am fearfully and wonderfully made. I hear in this statement that David recognized the awesome creativity and uniqueness of humanity with all its emotions, consciousness, and physical and spiritual value.

Within the sphere of that which is fearfully and wonderfully made lie the capsule of the body, the soul, and spirit, the will to right or wrong, and the ability to make choices. All these compartments fitly join together to affirm the wonderment of a living human.

David further recognized that in our mothers’ wombs we are covered and protected while we develop for nine months. Finally, we are released to continue in the greatness and wonderfulness. At this point, our self-image and self-worth are intact.

I reflect on being in an operating room as a student nurse and having the opportunity to see inside a human abdominal cavity. I saw how the organs were so neatly, skillfully, and professionally packed, and I was in total awe with wonder and amazement. At that moment, I myself confessed, Yes, man is fearfully and wonderfully made. The fearfully and wonderfully made human is special because someone took the time and thought to the placement of those organs, the arteries, and blood vessels such that functionality would not be a problem.

Each human is made with a unique personality and self-esteem. We are all made with the initial investment of wonderment. However, at certain stages of our lives, other self-images can enter, replacing the original wonderfulness. This alters the original beauty, leaving scars of shame and regret.

But the psalmist David could not escape the wonderment; therefore he affirmed in his evaluation of mankind, that I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

This book is designed to help salvage who you truly are. After reading this, I hope that you will find there is a path you can follow to reiterate and also state I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

It is all about your real self. Have you ever thought about who you are and your purpose in life? Do you have a mission statement for your life and plans to move toward a healthy self-concept? This will be your own definition and your own journey; it will not be your neighbors’ or any outsider’s. It will be yours, and with it you will start to love yourself.

Your real self is watching you, observing how you conduct yourself with yourself as well as with your peers, significant others, and society. You are the master of your own universe and you are in control although you face some limitations. Control because you decide which self you will display--how honest or dishonest you will be and which voice you will give speech. Which self will control your universe, what boundaries will you create, and who you will accept or reject?

Limitations because you are not there yet. You are limited in some spheres of your life: in the choice of your parents, siblings, culture, ethnicity, and your DNA. Many of the experiences you encountered in your early life are also outside of your control, solidifying your limitation. You and I have no control over our voyage to planet Earth and the way we entered it, but we do have choices in how we live and navigate our lives. Whether we were born in or out of wedlock, or whether through tragic circumstances such as rape or incest, or otherwise, we are here.

When we came into the world we had a real sense of self, packed with potential, and an eternal destiny—destined for greatness.

The true self is real. It has values and a belief system that is not negotiable and therefore should not be tampered with. Acceptance, honesty, and trust are key elements of the true self.’’ The true self" has your real identity, it is love, hope, the potential to become, peace, harmony, prosperity, and spirituality.

These attributes were already predisposed and packaged, you are destined for greatness.

I am aware that many people may disagree and possibly challenge me on this, but I have decreed that I am strong enough to welcome such challenges. As