Particularly, Nothing!

 So, I am still at work. But I wanted to talk about nothing in particular.

Umm, so I have been talking to some people recently and watching fan-fiction period drama (thanks, Bridgerton!) and I have come to conclusion that we are still in Jane Austen's England and everybody is a Lydia. Except my house - my house is a Lizzie. It is indeed an unfair generalization. Yet, everything feels absolutely nuts. I try not to think about anything else except how I am so happy that my mum encouraged my sister and me to read! Reading has helped us both to: i) talk to each other and everybody else by giving us the language/vocabulary to!, ii) develop our own ideas about things and appreciate others' as objectively as possible, iii) develop the bravado to be a little bit deviant. Deviant is quite a strong word though one that's not really uncalled for. Without really getting into it, here are some facts. Our circle of friends/family is a highly privileged circle. Women have struggles at every social circle imaginable, the complexity changes. It's tough to do what you want. It's tough to imagine alternatives. I mean, conditioning works the most when it is directly infused into daily life and is what is 'normal'. That is why it's possible to be deviants even in our privileged bubble, not just deviants in comparison to people who have it the opposite of easy.

Going back though, to the Pride and Prejudice analogy. Lizzie also assumed things. In a way.. she set her own self apart I think from the beginning. The part where she asked Charlotte about her marriage? Something like this has been happening too! I was discussing something with R and it came out in a tone I am not proud of. It was good she didn't catch it and showed so much empathy. She said how difficult it would be to be a woman in a marriage situation in the middle of a patriarchal system. Something clicked then. Women need that. Support from each other. I think I re-realized this very important lesson. It's about all of us together, you know? Empathy and kindness goes a long way. Let's be a little bit Jane too, maybe?