A long time ago, I wrote a post about the word sonder. Since you all probably don’t need or want to go back and read my random ramblings from 2020, the basic idea is that everyone is living their own lives, separate from yours. And that you will never have the privilege of knowing everything about those lives – only they will know that.

Sonder came back to me when I read Ed Yong’s recent piece on Umwelt in The Atlantic. Umwelt is the concept that each animal (and I would include humans in this) has its own “sliver of reality”, as Yong said. Yong focuses on animals and how their perceptions of the world are so very different from those of humans, thanks to different senses, abilities, color perception, and many, many other things. A tick (to use one of the examples in the article) has a very different perception of the world than I do. Same goes for all other animals.

Extending that to humans, it made me think that I will never know the world in the exactly the same way as other humans. I will never know what it is like to live in their bodies. I won’t know what it feels like for them to move through the world. It’s a humbling thought – we are all the center of our own stories, of our own worlds. But so is everyone else. And no one person’s story is more important than any other person’s. (Granted, some people may think their stories, their lives, are more important than others’, but that’s not a philosophy or worldview that I follow… )

I have seen this in my work life, my personal life, my day-to-day life. I have my own way of seeing the world, and so do my students, and my colleagues, my parents, my friends… It’s immensely valuable to me to try to improve my understanding of how others see the world. Without trying to learn at least a tiny bit about others’ lives, I can’t really know them. This hit home last week when I was learning more about the new students in my seminar class. There are four of them – all have unique histories and experiences and contexts that will influence who they are as students in my class, and who they become as they move through and beyond graduate school. Like all Umwelten, they also have their own limits to how they perceive the world, just as I do. Knowing even the tiniest bit about who they are helps me when I listen to their insights in class, when I grade their assignments, when I challenge them during our discussions.

And then another article came across my feed, this time from Raptitude. The author of that piece makes the case that we are always The Other in everyone else’s life. We come and go in others’ lives, but we’re not the center of their stories. They are.

Another humbling thought. I’m the center of my life, sure. But you are the center of your life – I am a bit player, who wanders through periodically with a new blog post. I’m not even a primary Other in your lives – I suspect I am waaaay down on the list, to be honest, as I’m not even a daily presence in your lives.

But even those minor, or secondary, Others can be so important in our lives. They can offer insights, different ways of seeing a situation, different perspectives.

We may never know what it is like to be living someone else’s life. We may never know what it’s like to live in their body. But we can still learn from them. We can expand our own worlds by learning more about theirs.

There are some people who never want to learn about others’ lives. To them, I guess, it’s more important to focus on their own ways of being in the world. But to me? It’s critical to know more about the worlds the Others in my life inhabit. Otherwise (sorry, couldn’t resist…), how can I expand my knowledge of the world? How can I expand my knowledge of them as a person? If I don’t try, then I’ll just go through life in my own little bubble of reality, blissfully unaware that my life is so very different from others’ lives. It seems a lonely and isolating way to live, if I’m being honest. I can’t even conceive of being so, well, uncurious about others.

What is it about some people that makes them inherently curious about the world and how others see it? And, in contrast, what is it about other people that makes them so focused on their own lives? Questions for another day (as this is getting really long)… but oh, so interesting to contemplate. (And, can people change? Can they go from wanting to know more about others’ lives to being completely uninterested? Seems impossible to me, but.. maybe?)

OK, that’s not the most informative blog post title, but… it’s (mostly) what I am feeling as this week draws to a close. The post from earlier this week definitely reflected my state of mind at that time… but it’s always fascinating to me how things can turn on a dime, shifting my frustration and stress and, well, overall angst to a more positive outlook.

Sometimes, the Universe delivers. And when it does, I feel compelled to say thank you. Plus, I feel like my blog has devolved into a whine-fest, and I don’t want it to be that way. Being here, interacting with those of you who still come by, and getting out of my work-brain for a few minutes, at least, helps to feed my soul. And that is a good thing.

What helped? Well, for starters, having a meeting on Tuesday that alleviated a ton of the work-related stress. It was budget related (no further details required, I suspect) and I had managed to talk myself onto a ledge, imagining the worst. Turns out my “worst” was a bit of an overreaction (shocking… or not… :>), and I found out that things are probably going to be okay. There is still a chance that things could go south, but it’s much smaller than I had anticipated.

Then, I took control of my schedule on Wednesday and backed out of a previous commitment. I don’t do this often, but when I do, there is a reason. And hopefully a good one. The result? Wednesday reassured me that all was not lost, that I am making progress (sort of) both physically and mentally, and that I can still do my job. And do it (mostly) well. To have that kind of day led to a 180 in my mental state, and as a result, my physical state.

Yesterday (Thursday) was what finally catapulted me out of the self-pitying doldrums where I found myself earlier this week. I “had” to go in to work to present to a new group of students who will be working with faculty on research projects and grants. It was the best thing that could have happened to me. I got to see three of my favorite people in one place for the first time in, well, years. I got to give a fun and mostly ad-libbed presentation with one of those favorite people, on one of my favorite nerdy topics (um, literature searches and the library… told you it was nerdy!). I got to answer questions from engaged students, and make them laugh.

And I got an unexpected – completely unexpected – raise.

That last point isn’t THE point. The big thing that reminded me of why I do what I do was the presentation to the students. But, on the same day, I was also reminded that the school has invested in me, and that they see me as a “good” investment. It’s a large enough raise to improve my savings cushion more than anticipated. And that relieves some of the financial stress I’ve felt for the last year, as I’ve shifted from being a member of a dual-earner-no-kids couple, to being a middle-aged single divorced woman, with one income. I didn’t realize quite how stressful that had been until a bit of it lifted.

It was huge.

I did get some slightly stressful news later in the day but I am holding out hope that things will turn out in a positive way, and that my worrying and fretting will have been for naught.

For now? I’m going to seize the moment, and enjoy the shift to positive thinking, forward movement in my career, and thinking about bringing a tiny bit of fun into my weekend. (More on that, I hope, in a soon-to-come post…)

So thank you for being here. For being such wonderful supporters, even though I haven’t met any of you in person. For being who you are, and sharing your lives, too, which helps to remind me that my world is not the only world. That there are others out there facing their own challenges, and doing it with smiles on their faces. Just, thank you. <3

Leaving you with this, which just spoke to me today…

When I was young, I believed that life might unfold in an orderly way, according to my hopes and expectations. But now I understand that the Way winds like a river, always changing, ever onward.. My journeys revealed that the Way itself creates the warrior; that every path leads to peace, every choice to wisdom. And that life has always been, and will always be, arising in Mystery.

Socrates

Yet again, my long break from this blog was not intentional.

At first, it was – I left for vacation with my family at the end of July and knew that I wouldn’t be posting that week. But I assumed I’d be here the week after that, perhaps recapping the trip (it was wonderful) or highlighting what I hoped August would bring.

What August wound up bringing was, well, a bit of chaos. See, when I fractured my arm and had to have surgery, I also had to postpone a bunch of medical appointments and procedures that had been scheduled to try to figure out what’s going on with my whatever-it-is chronic illness. And all of those appointments (save one) had been moved to the two weeks after I returned from vacation.

So it was out of the (cool, very relaxing) vacation frying pan and into the appointment fire.

I was barely keeping it together, let alone feeling like I could post.

And I still feel like life is spinning out of control. I think it’s this feeling I hate most – that my prized control is slipping, and that I am just doing things to get them done and moving on. There’s minimal structure to some of my days – which I typically love – but often I find myself chasing shiny objects, and jumping from thing to thing to thing without focusing on what needs to be done first.

Now, I am trying (desperately) to emerge from that chaos and squirrel mind.

At the same time, work has, um, not been easy (let’s just leave it at that for now) and I had some major unanticipated work-related stressors earlier this week. The kind of stressors that leave you wondering whether you really want to keep doing this. It has been a tough few weeks and I’m hoping (desperately) that I am starting to emerge from it.

I just spent 10 minutes searching for this poem… which seems rather apt in this moment. So I leave you with this, and the promise to be back again soon. And I mean it this time. (If, um, there’s anyone left out there who’s still reading at this point…)

Blessing in the Chaos

To all that is chaotic
in you,
let there come silence.

Let there be
a calming
of the clamoring,
a stilling
of the voices that
have laid their claim
on you,
that have made their
home in you,

that go with you
even to the
holy places
but will not
let you rest,
will not let you
hear your life
with wholeness
or feel the grace
that fashioned you.

Let what distracts you
cease.
Let what divides you
cease.
Let there come an end
to what diminishes
and demeans,
and let depart
all that keeps you
in its cage.

Let there be
an opening
into the quiet
that lies beneath
the chaos,
where you find
the peace
you did not think
possible
and see what shimmers
within the storm.

-Jan Richardson

And, oh, yes, an update on the much-anticipated shower! I know you are all waiting with bated breath to know if I did get the shower that I was desperate for after two weeks. Ha!

• I did get the shower. It might have been the best shower I have ever had. Before, when I was dealing with medical issues (“crises” seems a bit strong… :>), I hadn’t had these types of restrictions. I had other ones (e.g., covering something while showering) but never the strict admonition to keep the dressing dry no matter what it took. Anyway, I came back from the clinic appointment and got in the shower at… 9:30 am. It was glorious.
• I will confess that I did get the dressing oh-so-slightly wet most days. This didn’t seem to matter – much – until the last few days, when it did start to threaten to peel up from the edges. This meant that I frantically applied tape to those edges in an effort to avoid having to take more drastic measures (like, um, wrapping my arm in saran wrap, no thanks…).
• I have no shame in admitting I took another shower that evening. None at all. I need to donate to an environmental group, though, to make up for my excessive showering that day…
• A bit more arm stuff, then I promise I’ll move on!
• The good: I am improving every day. I am completely off pain meds (I was only taking 1 tylenol at bedtime and… yeah. Let’s just say that’s probably not doing much…) It still hurts but it’s not bad at all. Maybe a max of 5/10? Nothing I can’t deal with. I’ve also started eating more – yay – and moving more – double yay! I think I’ll be okay for our vacation next week – this will be a moderately active vacation but no hiking up the sides of mountains. 🙂
• The not-so-great: Well, sleep still isn’t fantastic, although I have gotten a few nights when I’ve slept 2-3 hours at a time! This is amazing for me. Those nights, unfortunately, are usually followed by nights when I wake up every hour on the hour, pretty much. Sigh. My hair is still falling out (see below). And… the bills are rolling in. Double sigh. Thank goodness I have insurance but honest to Pete, you should have seen the full charges for the not-even-overnight hospital care! Gaaahhh…
• Things making me happy…there are many of them. Which makes me happy. 🙂
  • I still talk to my parents every morning. It makes me so darn happy.
  • I’ve also started eating an apple and roasted almonds for my snack and I completely forgot how much I love apples. I tried Pink Lady this time and they are wonderful. Not sure what I will try next. Mini desserts (chocolates + some ice cream and fruit). Whew. I missed these!
  • 56 Hours. Wow. I’m totally sucked in. It may not be high literature but you know how sometimes you just read the right book at the right time? I suspect this is one of those situations. I also read One Night on the Island and enjoyed the slightly non-traditional ending.
  • My class. It’s nearly over – uploading grades on final assignments today – but oh, this class helped keep me going this summer! My students were awesome. Absolutely fantastic. Such a joy to enjoy this part of my job!
  • My hair. OK, this is both frustrating and good. My hair looks terrible when I grow it out. It gets straggly and kind of limp and looks very thin and kind of pathetic. How I wish I could have long, gorgeous hair like so many of you. But alas, it seems as though my thin (and now thinning more, sigh) hair does not want to be long anymore. As I was supposed to have a hair cut in May and had to reschedule, and her first appointment was last week (yes, I love this stylist but oh, it is hard to schedule with her!), my hair was reaching the “wow, it looks amazingly awful” stage. Last week I had over an inch and a half cut off and I LOVE it. It’s doing the curly thing it does in the summer, which I’ve learned to live with. I also bought some (ahem, ridiculously expensive) stuff that is supposed to help thicken it. We shall see. I have my doubts.
  • Back to food… summer plums and peaches and apricots that are so juicy you need to eat them over the sink to catch the drips. The. Best. (I’m sorry if you dislike fruit, but… I just don’t understand you…. :>)

I am hoping to be back here with more normal, non-arm posts soon. I’ve been (finally) reading some posts and long-form articles that are really making me think (in a good way!) and I have thoughts that I feel compelled to share.

A brief taste of those bits of wisdom making their way into my life…

• The word “umwelt”, which entered my personal lexicon last week…(from Rob Walker)
• Seeking “aliveness” vs. seeking “meaning” (from Oliver Burkemann)
• Being present… paying attention…
• In light of current events in the US, this from Krista Tippett in an interview with GQ: “We have a bias—which I also inherited, it’s in our education—to take what is dysfunctional and catastrophic and frightening and failing more seriously than what works well and what is quietly flourishing. The bias is a really powerful one. …The question for me in the beginning is, how can we make goodness as riveting as evil and destruction? … A part of that is the way we’re wired and the way we’ve been educated: not to take in the fullness, the reality, and the complexity of what is happening that is generative, that is redemptive, that doesn’t cancel out that the terrible story of our time but it stands alongside it.” Making me think about how I can work for good, rather than just lamenting the bad, the awful, and the cruel that seem to surround us these days…

And I shall leave you with that. Here’s hoping that “normal” really does make a re-appearance here soon. I hope you are all staying cool and at least getting some time to enjoy your summers. I am – still – dreadfully behind on blog reading, but hope to make up some ground in the coming week+.

(Apologies for missed typos in advance…)

• Overall, I’m so happy with how things are right now. I mean, given the fact that I have a fracture in my arm that I didn’t expect to have, they’re going as well as I can have expected.
• The difference between now and a couple of weeks ago is amazing. I know everybody was freaked out when I said I had to have surgery, but honestly? It’s much better having had the surgery, than feeling the bones move around in my shoulder. Sorry to all of those who get squeamish about these things, I tend not to given the whole ‘nurse’ thing… However, I’m sure you can imagine that having a fracture that was unstable and moving around is a lot more painful and difficult to manage than having a fracture that is now stabilized even if it’s with some metal.
• I am now within two days of being able to take a regular shower. I can’t tell you how excited I am about this. I already have my plans for Wednesday morning. If I get to my clinic appointment, and they tell me I can’t take a regular shower? I think that may be the point when I lose it. 😊
• This experience has made me realize just how lucky I am. I’ve been in this area for five years now. I kept saying I didn’t have friends, and my parents would worry about me. But it turns out? I actually kind of do. This has been a revelation to me. One of my friends came and made my bed for me two weeks in a row. I told another friend, who promptly offered food, visits, etc., despite her own stresses and challenges (3 kids under 7, etc.). And then, there’s the person who is a year ahead of me on the tenure track, who was unbelievably understanding when I had to back out of a guest lecture. She’s someone I actually would like to get to know better … except for the fact that we’re both dedicated introverts. Ha!
• My students have been amazing. This shouldn’t be unexpected, since all of them are in Health Sciences, and one would expect them to have a little bit of empathy for a medical problem. However, they’ve been so understanding of my need to move things online for several weeks. That wasn’t the plan for this course, and it’s not what I signed up for, and it’s not what they signed up for. Their flexibility, their support, and their cheerfulness in the face of all the change, have made my summer that much better.
• I’ve started off my days in a very different way than I did before. I’m not able to work out right now. I simply don’t have the reserve, and as I’ll get to in a second, my body has a lot of challenges dealing with physical stress. So instead, I’m sleeping a little later, and I’ve been starting my days by having a phone call with my parents. I love connecting with them, and I love the daily check in before I start my day.
• People around here are unbelievably nice and helpful. I strongly suspect this is partly due to my location, but I also like to think that anybody with a sling who’s looking rather lost and in pain in a grocery store will be helped by someone! I’m very grateful for this.
• That’s not to say there haven’t been some challenges. Sleep has not been great. I’m only really able to sleep sitting up, to lessen the pressure on my arm and my shoulder. This is not conducive to prolonged sleep, as you can imagine. So, essentially, I’m up about every hour on the hour during the night. If I get 2 hours in a row, it’s cause for a middle of the night celebration. I’ve also had bizarre headaches, which I think are due to both allergies, and not having dessert. More on that in a second. So I’ve been eating saltine crackers in the middle of the night, which is a bit unusual. And no, I am not pregnant!!!
• My appetite goes away completely when I face physical stress, or injury. This is common for me. I may be physically hungry but I’m not able to eat. I literally sit there and look at the food, and I’m unable to stomach it. Which means I lose weight, and I really can’t afford that. I’m also completely deconditioned… sigh. I know I’ll get back in shape, but my stamina, flexibility, and strength all disappeared in the last almost-month. It’ll be (another) long road back…as before.
• Also? I’m not eating dessert right now, which is driving me crazy. I know that having dessert would probably help my middle of the night headaches, as well as the fact that I need to gain back the weight I’ve lost. But every time I’ve sat down the last week or so with a cup of tea and dessert, my stomach has completely revolted. I don’t quite understand this, and I’m hoping it resolves soon. My evening tea, dessert, and reading time is precious to me.
• One good thing that came out of this is that we changed our family vacation – we’re no longer going to Canada (sorry, Nicole and Elisabeth) but instead we’re going to the Finger Lakes in New York State. This means that I’m the only person who has to fly. We had already had multiple flight changes and issues, and knew that even if we GOT there, by some miracle, we’d then start worrying about getting home. This is a much better choice. My sister-in-law has already been actively researching, so we’re all relying on her to fill our days with good activities. I should be good to go, but I won’t be able to climb up the side of a mountain or anything.
• OK, this is getting long – time to wrap it up! So what’s been keeping me going this all this time? The end date. My clinic appointment is Wednesday morning. I should get the stitches out then, and my hope is that I’ll be able to take a regular shower that day. I will probably come home from the clinic appointment and do so. 🙂
• The other things are reading your blogs, even if I’m really late in commenting. My parents, of course, and the rest of my family. The texts and the pictures and the showing me what they’re up to, when I’m mostly restricted to my apartment, are so wonderful. Believe it or not my air fryer is saving my life, too. It’s so much easier to work with than the oven when you only have one arm!
• At the same time, it hasn’t been easy. I’ve had times when I’ve been really really down. But that happens. I will get through this, I know I will. I’ll definitely be different and changed afterwards as I am after every one of these major health events but that’s the way it goes! Thank you all for being here, as usual. You sustain me.