You may or may not be aware of the infamous ‘black sheep 🐑 of the family’.
It refers to anyone who is :
✅Out of the box 📦 unconventional & non-conformist (sheep are white so a black one stands out)
✅Thinks and does things opposite to what society, long held family traditions, religion & cultural norms dictate,
✅Unapologetically authentic, outspoken & brutally honest
✅Self aware, observant, intuitive and cognizant
✅Misunderstood, judged, rejected, criticised & ostracised
I’ve always innately been the Black Sheep in more ways than one in my family & society at large. I was raised in a conservative & patriarchal environment that was collectivist, where you HAD to conform to what was dictated by society, family, traditions, cultural norms, religion in order to be accepted or respected & your family’s reputation to not be jeopardised.
Since childhood I openly defied & vocalised against archaic concepts such as the role of religion, the worth of a woman as solely being a docile dutiful daughter in law, mother & wife, the 9-5 slavery & material possessions as being the sole indicator of success, your professional worth measured in degrees and accolades & wealth & bowing down to the shackles of people in positions of authority who were tyrants not real leaders.
This unsurprisingly often got me into trouble in my familial & social circles, romantic & professional relationships. I was perceived as being rebellious, was isolated, bullied, abused and a major source of threat
However, as time went by, these people realised that everything I vocalised openly about back in the day slowly started becoming acceptable. Be it earning a living online on your own terms, religion being a scam, living a minimalist, unmarried and childfree life, all of these things started to become not only popular but the norm. Those very people now tell me I was always ahead of my times. I’ve since managed to attract a community of fellow black sheeps who are my ride or die !
I’ve since researched a lot about black sheeps and whether they’re born or made. In my case, I was CHOSEN for this role not only for my unconventional life to set an example to my family, friends and the younger generation, but to also break the cycle of toxicity and dysfunctionality present in my family and the Southern Asian community in general. Essentially, the black sheep identifies and truthfully calls out BS that’s often the elephant in the room and I’ve done that more times than I can count
I’ve now internalised this as an integral part of my identity, take utmost pride in being the chosen one and leveraging it across all other areas of my life. This will be addressed in detail in my podcast interview with Angela Gentile
My fellow black sheeps, I’m here to tell you that there’s nothing wrong with you & you don’t need to fear or hide. You’re unique, special, one of a kind & have been chosen to do and see things the rest of the world is too scared or blind to. I hear, see & support you.
