WE DO IT FOR THE AESTHETIC

This may be an extremely weird post for you to read, and it literally may not even make sense to you, but oh well. Welcome to the mind of Mignon Marcia Nell.

So a bit of a mid-adult-life crisis over here, and something that really knocked me out of nowhere. Before these last two weeks, I never realised that I was basing part of my identity on my "aesthetic". My look, my style, the colours of my apartment. I posted a status as a joke because I was wearing all-black, with combat boots (which is totally bad-ass), and then paired it with a light blue, fluffy jersey, with the caption, "I don't even know what my aesthetic is anymore". And just like that, my whole world imploded.

I told you this was going to be weird... It is literally a first world problem, but we deal with them as they come.

However, when something that was shaping your identity without you realising it gets brought into the light and ripped from you, it will 100% confuse you. And this was such a strange thing to base my identity on. It was my "branding". The colours; blue, green, and neutrals. My home aesthetic being a neutral Bali aesthetic. I'll show you what I mean:

I had no idea the impact, and could also not figure why I had felt so frustrated lately. For those of you who don't know, I am a creative at heart. I literally am creative 24/7, that is what I do for a living. I am a creative designer. An event planner. I could not understand why lately it had been difficult for me to actually be creative and why I kept hitting creative blocks, and why I hadn't felt at home in my own home. Then on reflection of this one mid-adult-life crisis, it hit me. Why on Earth would I, as a creative person, want to live a neutral life? My home can reflect my creativity, it can be my personal outlet.

So there I go, right back to Pinterest to start getting some ideas for my new self, my new look. (Not in a sense that this is now what I would base my identity on, but where I would find inspiration). And this is what I found to spark my interest:

Very "princessy", I know! I am obsessed! I better get this out of my system BEFORE I settle down with a man (I wouldn't want to put him through this). But how much more freeing would it be to just let yourself be who you are? To embrace your TRUE style? I don't know if you've ever felt the way I have, or if you have been trying to fit into this "it girl" aesthetic that TikTok and Instagram is saying is the be-all and end-all... but I do know this, we are all different. We are not meant to look the same, or like the same things, or dress the same way. God knew that, which is why He created us each individually.

I have written a couple of blog posts about "Identity In Christ", and yet find myself years later struggling yet again with identity. I think we get so caught up on what and who the world is telling us to be that we end up losing ourselves. We need to be so careful and so aware of this.

How do we prevent this? How do we stop it in its tracks?

There is no easy answer or remedy to this. It is a constant aspect we as Christians need to work at. There are a couple verses we can use to remind ourselves that we no longer live for this world and that our identity is not found in this world but in Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

Jeremiah 1:5

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.

1 Peter 2:9

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.

Do not lose courage and hope, our journeys are life long ones. We are constantly being remoulded, refined. Find encouragement in the struggles and in these little revelations. Welcome them with open arms! I am so excited to finally actually just let loose and make my apartment as colourful as I possibly can, even if it is going to take me ages.

What are you basing your identity on? And what are you going to next? How are you going to step into the person God created you to be? Whether it be big or small...it doesn't matter, just take that first step.

Good luck!