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Are you drowning in the small talk and the chatter?
Posted by Cory , Monday, November 15, 2010 12:01 AM
In my weekly round of DVR catch-up this weekend, I happened to catch Rainn Wilson plugging his book "Soulpancake: Chew On Life's Big Questions" on Jimmy Fallon. Intrigued, I noodled around the site for a bit and wound up joining, really only so I could access the database of questions (hello, wealth of writing prompts!). Here's my answer to a question that really resonated with me.
"What do you wish you'd accepted about yourself sooner?"
Oddly, I had a discussion with a friend about this concept quite recently. I was introduced to this particular kid not too long after I moved to PDX, and one Sunday we went to Mass at a Benedictine monastery not far away. During the ride back to my neck of the woods, we were chatting and continuing to get to know each other, and at one point, he made a stray observation:
"I'm still trying to figure you out. You're... different." Worried that he might have offended me, he started to backpedal a bit, but I assured him that I took it in stride. I did note, though, that while I can understand where that observation came from, I've never thought of myself as particularly "different"; I'm just me. I quickly realized, though, that this was not always the case. I spent a lot of time growing up trying to figure out what was "wrong" with me: why I didn't look like every other girl, or why other girls seemed to have such an easier time with... with life in general, I guess. What struck me about the question I stumbled across on Soulpancake was that it's taken me 25 years, but I've finally accepted that I am a little different from every other girl, and (opinions of my ex notwithstanding) THAT'S OKAY.
In fact, I rather like myself as I am.
[/moment of cheesy introspection]
I wouldn't have you any other way. It's difficult to be so awesome when you're someone else. ;)