I don’t know if some people have elected for some sort of Sisyphean pattern for their life or what, but it can be challenging to watch someone you care so deeply about, forget about themself. And for the myriad of reasons why someone would pursue this course, I think the root cause is that we live in a system that, for the most part, does not reward this behavior.
Please don’t get me wrong: the very act of orienting oneself outward—expressing virtues like love, compassion, and service—is one of the highest examples of character. I’m all for it and I think the world needs more of it. However, as a precursor to this, one must first be able to turn inward and extend those same virtues to oneself, at least to some degree.
]]>The goal was three-fold:
I never set a schedule. That was a mistake.
Starting now, I’m writing every other Friday. Call it a rhythm. Call it a practice. But it’s happening.
Why now and not the past four months?
Because the next five months matter.
This is my final semester at Columbia University as a master’s student. I’m writing a thesis, working on research I care about, and applying to PhD programs across the country. It’s a sprint and a story worth telling.
Inspired by Henry Josephson, I’m tying myself to the mast. Not to survive the storm that is ahead, but to stay grounded in the moment. To write. To think clearly. To turn experience into insight.
Let’s see where it goes.
]]>I will be posting periodically, but the goal is a more frequent output to keep you updated and keep me accountable.1
We’ll see if this actually goes somewhere… ↩