I had a birthday recently, and I was thinking lately about things I've learned at different stages of life. It's funny, getting older - things that seemed important or urgent when you were younger no longer matter. Things you used to fall for you now see through. I thought about the big lessons I learned … Continue reading Things I’ve learned that have served me well
Tag: personal growth
For those who learned to endure
I was talking to someone recently about the astoundingly ignorant response of "Why didn't they just leave?" that people give sometimes in response to things like abusive relationships or cults or toxic friendships and things of that nature - and how people who have never been in those situations like to convince themselves that they … Continue reading For those who learned to endure
Give yourself the gift of anger
I found this in my online travels, and since I'm not much for the "traditional" Western Christian version of Christmas, I thought - here's an actual useful lesson for the holiday that purports to be about lessons: It's okay to hold onto anger. You are not obligated to forgive. Not "because it's family." Not "because … Continue reading Give yourself the gift of anger
When the narrative just won’t evolve
They say art reflects life, and the older I get, the more I turn to it and see within the very same lessons that I've learned, or am grappling with myself. I realized recently that there's a reason why two of my favorite books are The Great Gatsby and Love in the Time of Cholera. … Continue reading When the narrative just won’t evolve
What can you do with an English degree?
When I first had to grapple with this question years ago, I told people, "I can apply to law school!" I was, as a very young adult, skilled in the art of telling people what they wanted to hear in order to temporarily cover up my true designs. If I'd told them that I had … Continue reading What can you do with an English degree?
“The closing walls and the ticking clocks”
Studies have shown that there's a powerful link between scent and memory. I have personally found this to be profoundly true. One breath in and suddenly I'm transported into the past. I have smell triggers. Lilies remind me of funerals. The smell of matches reminds me of burning candles late at night in my room … Continue reading “The closing walls and the ticking clocks”
Stepping out of my burrow
So I'm in my late 30s. This is an age that I think a lot of people dread, because 40 marks the beginning of middle age, the no-good, very bad slump that follows young(er) adulthood where we're all suddenly used-up malcontents who are either beaten down by life or on the verge of launching headfirst into … Continue reading Stepping out of my burrow
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