This is a brand new content series called Beards Behind the Brand! Our goal with this new series is to feature empowering stories from our community to encourage and inspire each other to be the best we can be.

It's all about doing better every single day, and these stories unite us in that mission. This week we're featuring Live Bearded team member Dusty Stutler. Dusty shares his experience, strength and, hope.

"Most of us live our lives out of fear disguised as practicality. Want we really want seems so far out of reach and so ridiculous to expect so we never ask the universe for it. I'm proof you can ask the universe for it." -Jim Carrey

Life…

The ultimate dichotomy.

Without darkness, there is no light.

Without pain, how could we know love?

If there was no despair, what is the point of hope?

If we never experience the cold, how do we feel warmth?

Life is fraught with heartache. Suffering. Negativity. Misery. Grief. But’s also full of beauty. Redemption. Joy. Salvation. Recovery.

That’s the balance of life… to live. Just… be.

I honestly feel that my story is the personification of life’s darkness and light; the beauty in the struggle.

There’s a verse in a song called “Aloha Ke Akua” by Nahko and Medicine for the People that says it best…

"If you knew what you were for

And how you became so informed

Bodies of info performing such miracles

I am a miracle made up of particles

And in this existence I’ll stay persistent

And I’ll make a difference

And I will have lived it"

So when you watch this video, you’ll have two choices:

1. Feel sorry for the pain I've gone through.

2. Be uplifted (and inspired!) by the battles I've conquered and am still fighting.

I strongly encourage you to feel the latter.

I feel extremely honored to share my story. I share my story not to boast or brag but, to hopefully inspire those that struggle or share the same affliction. I strongly believe that we all have and share a very similar malady. The human condition, as I like to call it. It may not look the same or manifest in the same ways but, I believe that we have all been affected by our past experiences and, it has shaped us into who we are, how we think, act and react.

I encourage you to find the similarities and not any differences in my story. In this way you can "share" my experience and hopefully find your own way of navigating any suffering that you may be experiencing or, have experienced.  

This is not a sad story. This is a story of perseverance and hope. None of these things happened "to" me, they happened "for" me. I strongly believe that every thing that happens in life, happens for a reason. All of the pain and suffering I have experienced has molded me into the person I am today.

There are all kinds pressures in life. There are pressures that can land you in prison but, the right pressure can create a diamond. There is a excerpt from a motivational speech by a gentleman named  Gabriel-Angelo  Ajayi and, it goes like this...

" Do you know what happens when ordinary or common meets the right sort of pressure? Let me tell you...it's extraordinary! Look at helium, Helium is the second most common element in the entire universe. At room temperature helium is a gas but, if you add the right sort of pressure, if you make it really cold it becomes a liquid. If you add MORE pressure and make it colder to just above absolute zero something magical happens...something special happens, it becomes a "super fluid". That means that it can't be contained. It went from gas, to liquid sitting in a cup. And when it went to "super fluid" that same liquid sitting in a cup begins to drip right through the bottom of the cup, like the cup had holes in it! There are no holes in the cup! It's just that the cup can't hold the "super fluid". What used to be common becomes something else. Something the cup can't handle. THAT'S what the right sort of pressure can do! It can take a gas and, turn it into a liquid that passes through a solid object. And you too can become something else. You too can become a different creature. You too can pass through the obstacles and situations in life that are holding you back. You too can become a "super fluid" and pass through the barriers of bad habits and the limitations of poor expectations. You too can pass through and beyond the devastation of disappointing results."

This is the sort of pressure that led me into addiction, prison and years of suffering. Life's pressures, BUT...it is also the same pressure that has created the change in my life today!

I believe that as long as we are thinking that there will always be some type of suffering. It's how we navigate that suffering and, the tools that we develop to deal with and face those demons that will ultimately determine what we become. What will you do with YOUR pressure?

If you are suffering...you do not have to suffer alone! You are not alone!  There IS a way out! We are always here to support you. If you need anything, do not hesitate to reach out! We are here to support you in any way we can!