15 Comments

I loved this, 😭😩 thank you🫶 so much for sharing

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Thank you for witnessing my words!!! I’m very, very grateful! Thank you 💜

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YES! So many times YES

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Omg, this is so good! I wanted to restack every single 34 of them! You are a gift to this world, my dear, thank you so much for sharing yourself and your thoughts and passions and reminding us again and again of what a well-lived life looks like (and the hard, painful, gratifying, life-giving work it takes.) Happy Birthday!

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Erika! The tears!! 😭😭 Thank you for saying all of this. Thank you for relating to so many, it’s so important to remember we are not alone in all of this and comments such as yours are a beautiful reminder of that. Thank you!!

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❤️❤️❤️

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Love this list!! Thank you for sharing and inspiring me. Belated birthday wishes to you too ✨✨

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Thank you for spending your precious time with my words and for the affirmations! Thank you! <3 <3

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Happy birthday!!!! And thank you for sharing this. It radiates the kind of gentle power, compassion, and kindness that we all need to put out into the world. <3

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Thank you! Thank you for spending time with my words and affirming me. I appreciate you a ton! <3 Sending much love your way.

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Jan 23
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Annie, thank you for your vulnerability. You’re not alone in this feeling at all. I have struggled with this as well, but this is where I allow trauma informed paradigms to help support my radical empathy, even if others don’t have it. I’ve decided my fight against the patriarchy will be through that radical empathy lens, which then allows me to see our harmed brothers as victims too -- not to say so many men aren’t absolutely abusing this-- but the reality is that the average man has been blindly participating in a system that they are unaware is harming them too, even whilst benefiting. When I talk to my man friends about the patriarchy, this paradigm often allows them to be more open to receiving what I’m saying, as attacks often close us off (I’m guilty of this!). bell hooks was absolutely vital for me to approach this topic in such a way, prior to reading her, I was so profoundly frustrated by the ignorance of men perpetuating harms. But honestly, it’s a constant fight of pure frustration which, thankfully, is often humbled by wholesome participation elsewhere. I find writing about the patriarchy this way has been a magnet for the men wanting to show up better, and I’m glad for it. All I can impact is my circle of influence, and this paradigm helps me do so. I’m not sure I answered exactly the question you asked, cause the reality is that it’s the both/and for me. Both frustrating and beneficial. Thanks for spending time with my words, Annie! 💜

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Jan 23
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Of course, thank you for sharing that, even if it felt funky!! It’s a constant journey for sure but I try to also have it with myself cause I’m only human. Sending love! 💜

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Dec 11, 2023
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Hi C.J., welcome back! I’m sure you’re not asking for a laundry list, so i’ll answer in this way: I am a white woman living in a white supremacist capitalistic patriarchal society. I have privileges that for too long I was unaware of. I had, and have because it’s a lifelong learning journey, unconscious biases that have sat in the driver’s seat of behavior and caused unintended harm. Many of us expel micro aggressions daily without ever coming to terms the harm our words can perpetuate. I no longer wish to live or communicate in such ways. Trauma informed living jives with my soul a whole lot better as I implied within the above piece. Hope your day is lovely!

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Jul 11, 2023
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Thank you for taking time with my words, I’m honored! Mine was yesterday as well!! Happy birthday!!! I hope your year is full of joy! 💜

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Jul 11, 2023
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Oh my goodness, yes! Cancerian intuition and empathy is such a gift. I used to be so ashamed for how deeply I felt, now I know it's a personal power of mine. Thank you! <3

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