Are You Okay?

It's okay not to be okay. I'm not okay, and I'm okay with that. Yet, I'm not okay with many things in our lives. Would you like to hear more?

Why Definitely Not Okay?

There are two parts to this story.

I am definitely not okay. I constantly struggle physically, mentally, and emotionally. I grew up in a culture where it was not okay to say "I'm not okay." I was taught to disregard my present, keep my eyes on the goal, and push ahead. It planted the idea pin me that I am not good enough. I was never good enough, but that's not true. I want to scream at the top of my lungs: "I'm not okay, yet I'm good enough."

We are definitely not okay. In fact, we are living in a big fucking mess. Cruelty abounds, and it's hard to keep our eyes open without tearing up. That's why we need to close our eyes from time to time, find our inner light, and fill ourselves with courage and compassion. Then we open them again. We stare at the ugly truths until we see through them.

Let’s face our vulnerability with honesty and compassion. We will grow together.

Love,

Linda (she/they)

Proud nerd writing vulnerable thoughts

Daring greatly means the courage to be vulnerable. It means to show up and be seen. To ask for what you need. To talk about how you’re feeling. To have the hard conversations.

- Brené Brown

No one enters violence for the first time by committing it.

- Danielle Sered

Indigenous Land Acknowledgment

Definitely Not Okay is written on the lands of the Narragansett and Wampanoag people, who had been here before Europeans arrived in 1636. European colonizers stole these lands through genocide, ethnic cleansing, and forced removal. This history includes the Great Swamp Massacre where some 700 Narragansett, including many women and children, were killed. I acknowledge the continuing destructive effects of colonialism on Native Americans and honor the indigenous communities’ strength to survive and thrive to this day.