I had written this as an e-mail to my girlfriend Kait. Time and again, we noticed that our conversation would be right in sync with each new issue of the Kinfolk magazine. I wanted to put it to the test and write up my predictions for the next issue.
Hey,
Sending this kind of like when you would send yourself registered mail to safeguard your intellectual property, only I’m sending it to you, and only to maybe give myself a pat on the back.
I was looking at patterns in our conversations over the past year because our thoughts often seem to align with issues of Kinfolk. I thought I would give it a shot and write my predictions for the upcoming Winter issue.
A
Volume Eighteen — The Authenticity Issue
We are growing older, but not only in our legs and arms and eyes, we also grow old in our hearts, as we fail to see the world like we did when we were little. As children, we had this incredible ability to believe, to imagine first and to reason after — maybe. The younger the child, the less concerned they are about facts, explanations and opinions.
As we grow older, we develop an insatiable need for explanations and reasons. We look for black or white truths that our minds can settle on and be — for as long as possible — content with. When uncertainty arises, the norm calls for reason, to explain and tame it. In our grown-ups society there is a sort of consensus, or conspiracy rather, that the explainable is the socially acceptable.
In between the black and white, however, there is an appealing, lush range of greys. It can be an uneasy fit, but the important piece is that there may not be a clear answer and that’s okay. The Authenticity Issue of Kinfolk will explore this in-between, seek out that which makes us distinctly ourselves, and embrace the here and now that makes us so unique. We want to uncover a new sense of truth that lies singularly off the beaten path.
The path ahead is not well known, but you are free to set your own track. If you escape the black or white answers, you can let your imagination run wild and make your path your own. And if you truly, really believe in it, it will come true. You can be who you are, your true, quirky, peculiar self.
The inherent guttural feeling of vulnerability — like the feeling of wetting your underpants during recess — is only fair, we have all been there. We can learn to hide or ignore it, but this feeling is the foundation of human connection. It is a reflection of our common humanity; we all experience it, and we are all in it together.
On this season’s snowy days, it may be time to bring out the old sled and hockey sticks, let ourselves find the forgotten child in each one of us; spend some time outside and outside our comfort zones, and warm up to some hot chocolate and good company after long days of childish play.
Originally posted on Brovalex.com then Medium.com