The Three Selves

The Three Selves: A Negotiation In The Eye of the Storm

The storm is howling outside. Punishing rains and screaming winds. But in here, in the eye of the storm, there’s silence, stillness and a sacred space.

Three chairs.

Three versions of you.

Past. Present. Future.

And for the first time, you're all there, together. Like estranged brothers. Man to man. Eye to eye. Not in conflict or running from one another. But sitting down… to talk.

Your past self sits with his shoulders slumped. Carrying the weight of shame, mistakes, and missed opportunities. He doesn’t speak at first. But then, with a cracked voice, he says the words that matter most:

“I’m sorry boys. I was doing the best I could. But I hurt us. I know I did.”

He can’t even lift his gaze. This sense of guilt has caged him for decades. Your present self swallows hard. He feels the pain. He’s carried the scars. But now… He looks across and says what no one else ever has:

“I love you brother. And of course I forgive you. You didn’t know how to love yourself. But I do now. And that means we’re okay.”

Tears swell... not from pain, but from release. Forgiveness dissolves the pain and chains that bound the past. And in that moment, something miraculous happens...

Future You smiles.

Not arrogantly or with any pity, but with quiet pride. This is the moment he's been waiting for what feels like a lifetime. Because this, THIS, is the conversation that changes everything.

This is the moment The Three Selves become one.

Aligned.

United.

Whole.

Self-love isn’t just being kind to who you are today. It’s healing the wounds of your past self. And earning the trust of your future self. It’s building a bridge across time. Because when the timeline is fractured, so are we. We stay stuck in cycles. Shame loops. Self sabotage. Burning our villages. But when the three selves are fully aligned and sit together, negotiate, and with compassion, not condemnation—the storm raging outside starts to lose its power.

This feels like inner peace and a fierce commitment to integration. To say to your past, “I forgive you.” To say to your present, “I love you.” To say to your future self, “I’m coming for you... and I’m bringing both of us with me.” That’s where self love becomes real power and transformation.

Not just a feeling, but a full-body, soul-level reconciliation. And it all begins with three chairs in the dead calm centre of the storm.

*This is an excerpt from my next and upcoming book, Kind Warrior.

👉Pre order now. https://trentleyshan.com/books