What a wonderful testament this post is to clarity, which you’ve explained and presented in a way that’s new to me, but also rings deeply true. I’m impressed that you were able to cross paths with outside perceptions without taking thing personally or allowing yourself to be thrown off your true path, or have your sense of self compromised. That’s a sign of healing and clarity if ever I’ve heard one.

And this: “Convincing people is highly overrated and defensive efforts to do so rarely work anyway.” Oh man. It’s so true, and the older I get, the more I realize it in all sorts of ways.

Lately, on dates, I’ve been getting a question I dread, which is “what do you do for fun?” I think I get asked because on first blush I must strike people as very serious, professionally focused, and it gets compounded by the fact that I don’t drink, go to bed and wake up early, don’t really care for bars or NYC nightlife. How to explain that “fun,” for me, is often a day of cooking or reading or taking a walk in the neighborhood I’ve lived in for 36 years, but in which I discover tiny new sights and sounds all the time?

I’ve come to feel at peace with the fact that I experience “fun” my own way. Some people will get it, some won’t, but what matters is that I know it and see it—with clarity.

Thanks for this post. I’m sure I’m not the only reader who’s glad that you’re re-reading chronologically; it’s creating some wonderful realizations and very clear, strong articulations about who you are and what this space is all about.

xoxo