New beginnings

What brings you joy? What gives you a feeling of openness and expansion? Conversely, what gives you feelings of heaviness and contraction?

These are not frivolous questions. When we amplify joy and contentment rather than anger and scorn, we make our world a better place.

For me, writing this newsletter for five years has given me expanding feelings of pleasure and satisfaction. Lately, though, I have found it increasingly challenging to write about current issues with any optimism or equanimity.

So…

I am being pulled to write in a different vein. A family memoir has been percolating in the back of my mind for years — not simply as a recounting of events but to reflect on some of these same current issues using a different framework.

For example, the story of my parents’ union in the 1950s — two people from radically different cultures, Iranian and Icelandic — is not a story about their disparate cultural identities but one of individual shared values. They came from families on opposite sides of the world where education and public service were highly valued. I’m not surprised they found each other in graduate school. Group identities were simply less relevant to them than individual values.

Throughout my life I have experienced people relating to me based on their interpretation of what they think my group identity is. But what is it? According to my bloodlines, I am 50% Icelandic and 50% Iranian. By passport, I am Canadian and American. Culturally, I am a blend that includes Italian and TCK influences. (A TCK, or third-culture kid, is someone who spent their formative years living outside their passport country; it is a unique experience to live abroad during childhood while one’s identity is forming.)

To understand others in any meaningful way, we must move beyond group identities. They are helpful, but not sufficient to create deeper understanding and connection. We need to explore individual perspectives and where they come from. It is here that we connect on a deeper level.

So, as a writer, I am shifting gears. I need to write differently than I have to date. I need to reflect on myriad experiences and insights. My writing will be private for a while, but at some point, I will reach out and offer you some work-in-progress. This newsletter/blog will be on hiatus for a while.

I continue to lead my Engaging with Difference® workshops with much joy, and I hope you will get in touch to schedule one. I offer it in several different formats (in-person, Zoom, full weekend, or weekly 90-minute sessions). Browse this website for details and testimonials.

My dear readers, I have truly enjoyed writing as I have for you, and I loved when you wrote back to me with comments. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. Please stay in touch.

As we approach the holidays and the dawning of a new year, I send you my very best wishes. May you find time to focus on what brings you joy and helps you thrive, because doing that will help to make the world a better place.

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Copyright © 2021 Sharon V. Kristjanson. All rights reserved.