I've still got thoughts percolating on a variety of things this week, so instead of one essay, I'm reporting a few stray thoughts and observations. Soon, I'm sure, I'll have more polished, finished pieces to share, but in the meantime, this will have to suffice.
+ We hosted a book fair this past week at a local preschool, and it was such a joy to see how many different kinds of mothers there are. Have you ever noticed? I looked around the room and saw young moms and older moms, moms in nurses' uniforms and moms in business suits, in matching outfits with their kids and wacky Wednesday ensembles in honor of Dr. Seuss. There was a CrossFit mom and a yoga mom, a mom of twins and an adoptive mom, a mom who had to leave early for a meeting and a mom who took extra kids home in her minivan (with permission, obviously). For someone who doesn't have kids of her own yet, it was encouraging to see evidence of the diversity of motherhood, to be reminded you can't detect a mother's worth by her appearance or her work, by how tired or by how rested she looks. I feel like diaper commercials have tried to teach me this, but it's best witnessed in real life, looking around at all the women I know who do motherhood differently, but still admirably and well. What a gift.
+ Between this article (which I mention below) and the new Hillary Clinton documentary, I've been thinking a lot about feminism and politics and what it means to find yourself in the middle: too much for one group and not enough for another. I've been thinking about the women I know and who they vote for and why, and what it all means to me. I've thought about what makes me angry and what makes me sad, and the confusion I feel when others don't feel the same way, or as strongly. I've wondered what 2020 will hold, what role my childhood and my upbringing and my faith and 2016 play in my current politics and how I choose to vote. I think about all the women I know who are like me and the ones who aren't, and how candidates are supposed to appeal to as many of us as possible, and how that seems like an impossible ask. I don't have conclusions yet -- perhaps I never will -- but I'm grateful to have the space to think through things, to be able to ask questions and reevaluate and not rush to judgment.
+ Adulthood, I'm realizing, is the acknowledgement that there are very few "good days" and "bad days," just days that are some amalgamation of the two. There are roller coaster days -- filled with highs and lows and peaks and valleys -- and there are whack-a-mole days, where you solve one problem before three pop up in its place. The Bookshelf has taught me this, but even my friends who aren't entrepreneurs agree: Most days are just a mixed bag. (Interestingly, as I've been contemplating this hypothesis this week, Jordan told me about an article he read that said people experience, on average, 60 bad days a year. I thought that sounded pretty low, honestly, until he explained that's about 1-2 days a week, and then it felt realistic, depending, I guess, on one's definition of "bad.") So I'm curious, I guess, what holds true for you, what turns your days from good to bad or vice-versa. I'm noticing my days can often turn based on a stray comment or observation or issue with a customer, so I'm working on it. I don't really want the success of my days dependent on the moods of another person. This week, after a particularly trying customer situation, I made the bizarre decision to dance a little bit after they left. (Nobody panic; I was alone in the store, and it wasn't an "in your face" kind of dance. It was more like "let's change the energy in here" kind of dance.) And you know what? It worked.
+ Harry and Meghan. That's it. That's the observation.
