I've been thinking about how certain I was at 35 — and how much has rearranged itself since.
Not disappeared — but rearranged. The roles I was so certain defined me are still there, just changed by time. Mother looks different when your kids have stopped needing you to hold everything together. Professional feels different when the calendar finally has space in it. And somewhere in that shift is something I can only describe as relief.
Today is about that.
The body that's changing before you named the change. The version of yourself you set down somewhere and are picking back up. And one small, strange thing about trees that made me want to call someone and read it out loud.
Sit With This
A man once said to the Buddha, “I want happiness.” The Buddha replied, “first remove ‘I’ that is ego. Then remove ‘want’ that is desire. See, now you are left with happiness.”
TODAY’S PICKS
THE FEATURE
Who Am I Now?
The version of you that held everything together is still there. She's just rearranging — and I think you already know that. This puts words to it.
THE REFLECTION
"Not Feeling Like Myself" — It’s a True Clinical Phrase Now.
I've said those exact four words. So have thousands of other women — and researchers decided to find out what they actually mean. What they found is worth knowing.
“63% of women reported not feeling like themselves at least half the time."
Are you in the 63%?
THE WILDCARD
The Tree That Thrives on Lightning.
There's a tree in Panama that gets struck by lightning and comes out stronger for it. I found this and immediately thought of every woman I know.
My answer:
My professional identity. My calendar — which I'm learning to fill on my own terms.
And a drawer full of socks and underwear that have absolutely no business still being in my life. Some rearranging is profound. Some of it is just long overdue.
