Go ahead and make fun of Gossip Girl. I know, I know … it’s a CW show about Upper East Siders with trust funds who scheme and wouldn’t think of getting their wedding gear anywhere else but Vera Wang. But, if you look past Blair Waldorf’s shoe collection and Dan Humphrey’s curly brown hair, you may actually learn a thing or two about life.

I’ll start off by asking for forgiveness because I am an episode behind. See my life doesn’t revolve around little Miss XOXO. But, after watching the previous episode, I realized a very valuable lesson … Know thy true self – and live it.

For those of you who have never watched an episode of this show (and never plan on it), let me fill you in on a few things. This show revolves around gossip (but you already knew that, didn’t you smartie). The story lines involve people conceiving plans to destroy and hurt others. It’s about fame. About your name in the world.

Not just in this last episode, but throughout the entire series, I feel one of the best messages to come out of GG is to remain true. Others include, but are not limited to: don’t wear headbands every day of junior year, don’t sleep with your best friend’s mom and don’t marry for anything other than love. But, those should be a given, so back to staying true.

In those 43 minutes of catty drama I just watched, it was the Blair and Dan moments that made me think. After Blair steals Dan’s spotlight at an important event for Humphrey, he looks at her and says “you’ve become so focused on how everyone else perceives you that you don’t even know who you are anymore.”

I sat there, pressed pause, and realized that’s how I’ve been starting to feel lately. I’ve been making decisions that haven’t been brining out my true self. This happens to everybody. The difference is that some realize it quickly. Others take more time and more mistakes. And some don’t realize it until it’s too late, if they ever realize it at all.

We weren’t born hurtful creatures. We are who we are. When you notice that changing for the worse, get your true self back … and never let it go. If the Queen B of GG can do it, anyone can. I know, she’s just a character on a teenage drama, but I’d put money down that most people can relate to her in one way or another.

Whatever you’ve been caught up in that caused you to lose yourself a bit, just break the cycle. If you’re lucky, you’ll have people there who love your true self and will help you in any way they can. And … look forward to meeting yourself again.