#15: A Way We Measure Change in Ourselves

How revisiting stories we read and watch turn out to be mirrors, and new year tidings.

Before I jump into this week’s issue, I just want to say THANK YOU— so very much, for being here and subscribing to this new hatchling of a space to share my work. I had wanted to re-start a newsletter for years now, and 2023 was the year I finally took the leap.

And I have you to thank, for lighting up my days with every comment, like, and subscription notification I get in my inbox. Wishing you all a healthy, joyous start to 2024 ❤️

I tend to get book hangovers, during which I grieve the end of a book (or especially if it’s a series) and am unable to get the story and characters out of my head for a few days after I finish. After reading an 8-book series recently (Throne of Glass) that grew on my soul much more than I expected, I was virtually depressed, not having these characters tuck me into bed through my Kindle every night, like they had for the 1.5 months. I picked up several other books on my list, lifelessly skimming the intro pages, eventually casting them all aside in reluctance to commit. To get myself out of the slump, I felt a little guilty pleasure by reaching for the first series I had read by that same author (ACOTAR, by Sarah J. Maas), for a re-read.

As I immersed myself in the familiar pages, I was not only delighted by how many little details I now knew were foreshadowing what was to come, but also surprised by the parts of the story I felt differently about upon a second passing.

You’d think that traveling the same road twice would feel like an identical imprint of the original experience, but it rarely feels that way. After ruminating on why I felt so happy doing a second read of this series, I realized that I’m a serial re-reader/listener/viewer… with everything I love.

Just like Rebecca’s mom said in Ted Lasso, I too, evidently feel this way.