We travel the world to find ourselves, but aren't we just running away from ourselves? Carl Jung once wrote, "One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious."
It's easy to look in the mirror and see our bright side. It's easy to acknowledge our talents and gifts. It's much harder to shine a light on the things we don't want to see. The failures, the jealousy, the fear, the hatred. Or the hurt little child, hiding deep within ourselves.
To see ourselves the way we are is one of the most difficult things to do. It requires radical honesty and courage. If we are able to look at our dark side without judgment, we may be able to accept ourselves as we are. If we no longer see our dark side as an enemy, we may befriend it. When we bring light to darkness, the darkness dissolves and our light will shine even brighter.