I am French '60s psychedelic pop on vinyl. The giver of homemade cards. An advocate for artists. A person who forges her own path. A connector of ideas. A storyteller.
Welcome, everyone, to my time-out corner. I put myself here because I realized I was being a bit of a bully. After several days of juggling numerous priorities and onboarding to a part-time gig, I averaged out my performance across all the things (directing, working, volunteering, being a friend/family member, etc.), and I gave myself a D. (Actually a D minus if I'm being totally honest.) The grade was neither accurate nor supportive, so I put myself in this corner until I could be kinder.
One of the many things that the pandemic has taught me is how to develop a better relationship with myself. While I've remained a huge proponent of leaning on social support, the fact of the matter is it has looked and felt very different since 2020. When friends and family haven't been able to meet my emotional needs, I've had to learn to rely much more on [you guessed it] myself. And, in the process, I've had to learn how to play nice.
I always come back to a line from the Velvet Underground: "I met myself in a dream, and I just want to tell you, everything was alright."
That right there. Pandemic goals.
The best trick I've discovered (when my current self just doesn't seem to have the ability to be patient or understanding) is to picture myself as the oldest and wisest version of me. What would she say about who I am in the present moment? What would she determine to be significant? Even just a few minutes of thoughtful and uninterrupted self-dialogue can feel like a massive, germ-free "higher self" hug.
If I didn't know before Covid, I'm glad to know now: in moments like these, the person I most need in my corner is actually me.
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