Dear 2022,
I hope that this letter finds you well. It serves to kick off the long standing tradition of reflective letters I contribute each year.
A point of order before I begin my reflection. This year, things will be a bit different. I'm only writing a dozen letters to you. The rest will come from the circle of friends who have been walking this journey with me. That being said, I thought I'd kick start today with a trend I picked up on your timeline.
The Nile is a long river in Egypt.
I think I was in primary school when I first heard that phrase. I don't remember the teacher who shared it but, I do recall the point she was driving across. Made perfect sense back in the day. "Deny everything" was a go to in Primary. If you didn't catch my hands in the jar - it wasn't me.
Adulting has, of course, brought about a different dimension of what denial is, what it means and how one navigates those dynamics.
2022, your timeline has been a constant reminder that the Nile is a long river in Egypt. I've lost count of the number of times you dealt me cards that forced me to face things as they were instead of how I wanted them to be. What an uncomfortable position...
This uncomfortable lesson has crept up in a few areas. I guess that biggest one being that there is no escaping the adulting gig. It's the biggest scam and it only gets trickier - unless you stop being in denial. What a difficulty.
Confronting the denial of being an empath has been both exhausting and liberating. Confronting the denial that people are not who they present themselves to be or a dealing with their own denials has been messy. Confronting the denial that adulting comes with growing pains...now that is where the danger is...
As much as denial is an unhealthy coping mechanism, it is at times very necessary and useful. It affords breathing space; it is like a bridge to reach the inevitable challenges of life.
ReplyDeleteGrowing pains are a part of every stage of life, naturally they would be a part of adulthood. The danger lies in denying that the route that you're on has already been traveled by others and refusing to learn from their experiences!
I agree with you. It comes in as such a useful coping mechanism...until you have you accept things as they are. Yho.
DeleteYour last point...hectic.