I am sure that by now most, if not all of you, have heard about or seen the video of the Chewbacca Mask Lady. This was the Live Facebook Video that broke the internet…but why?

In case any of you have not had the good fortune to stumble across this yet let me fill you in on the details.

Candace Payne , a regular 37-year-old mom from Texas, decided to share her total, complete and unadulterated joy with her friends after finding a toy Chewbacca mask at a local Kohl’s store. This wasn’t just a mask however…. it also makes Chewbacca sounds!!

Here is one of many links to her video for those of you who wish to see and hear what exactly I am talking about:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3yRv5Jg5TI

However the question remains, what exactly about this video registered so deeply with people and resulted in millions of hits worldwide with such positive feedback?

The answer is simple. Candace broke the rules.

Somehow along the journey of human evolution we have lost our ability to just be ourselves and to express our humor, joy and bliss in public ways without fear of what others might think.

These invisible, unwritten and assumed rules have snuck their way into society and woven themselves in an unwelcome manner into judgement, negativity and non acceptance.

In order to “fit in” one must not laugh too loud but must also not refrain from laughing because that is rude. One must not have a bad hair day however must also go with the “trend” of having a messy hair look. Wearing clothes with a stain or wrinkles is considered dirty or disheveled but wearing jeans that are purposely ripped in a fashionable way is completely fine. You can’t weigh too much or not enough, be too tall or not tall enough.

Well I am done. I am tired of all these rules!! I just want to be me stretch marks, scars, curves, messy hair days, imperfections and all. I want to be able to laugh with my heart and smile with my soul. I want people to accept me for me not because I fit into these boxes or conform to these rules.

I know I’m not the only one who feels this way and this is why this regular mother from Texas caused such a reaction. She was raw, authentic and brilliantly herself in every moment of that video. This is something we all crave and yet struggle to achieve for fear of standing out and being noticed.

Candace Payne, I don’t know if you will ever see this but I am still putting it out there. Thank you for breaking the rules that day in the car. Thank you for owning the bright, funny, witty, beautiful soul you are and sharing it with the world. Your gift reaches further than you will ever know.

Wherever you are, whatever you are doing I wish for you to see the beauty and uniqueness that is in you, the ability to let go and truly express yourself and the confidence to break all the rules.

Love D.