Authentic Self

Lately I've been a little meloncholy. I guess I've been struggling with a lot of different issues in my life that sort of all colminate into the idea of my authentic self. I struggle with my own identity and fitting into society while remaining my authentic self. I struggle because a lot of times I suffer from 'square peg-round hole' syndrome, its a very techinical term for not fitting in.

I live in a conservative mid-western city, I'm married but do not plan to have children, I have liberal politics, I am pro-choice and support gay marriage. The icing on the cake is I'm a vegetarian. All of this together and I raise a lot of eyebrows, in the conservative midwest, that is, but I have to be who I am.

But sometimes it's hard to be who you are when it's different from everyone else. The big thing that I struggle with in fitting in is 'no kids'. At first I would get the sympathetic looks or the 'well, maybe someday' from strangers when having this conversation (and seriously, I think "I'm having this conversation with Strangers?!"). But I felt that was misleading, now I just answer "No, we have cats." I admit that does paint me in a certain light that is just this side of crazy, but then there are no more questions.

I know I'm doing the right thing in not changing who I am because the world around me expects me to be a certain way, but boy, sometimes it sure is hard. I have to remember that nothing worthwhile is ever easy. I don't hurt anyone. I don't expect to change anyone. I just want to be Heather, and continue in the off-beat, independent minded, trailblazing way I have lived my life thus far.

Remember...it's a jungle out there, take care of each other.