And it begins...

"We find our freedom in the same place we find our suffering."

At a divvy East Village bar, a few blocks away from where I began my New York City chapter over 16 years ago in a sixth floor walkup studio with a view of the Empire State building, I shared with friends I was starting a Substack.

One of them asked: “What are you inviting people into?” In that moment, my feet dangling from a bar stool, I did not have a response.

So here’s what I’ve got:

I’m inviting you into my life, my journey – what drives me to live the way I live, what feelings haunt me that perhaps also haunt you, what breaks my heart, what gives me hope…

I’m inviting you into my musings – about humans, community, the world – as I walk the hills of San Francisco; into what brings chills through my body, what I lay in bed thinking about when my incessant mind won’t stop turning.

There’ll be essays, poems, letters, quotes, streams of consciousness, observations, reflections. I plan to post every Friday, sometimes more often.

Why share in this way? Why now?

I believe in the serendipitous ways our paths crisscross with one another, connecting us like a newly-discovered constellation. When you read my words – words informed by my lived experiences, and the words and lived experiences of others – we all become connected in a magical, intangible way.

And connection is what, I believe, being here, is all about.

I believe in the power of sharing, of letting down the veil, of feeling your hands sweat and your heart beat into your ears before you step up to the plate, knowing you are going to strike out - and still trying.

It is from these places that blossoms grow even from the ugliest of seedlings.

This will be my fifth attempt at a blog - there was my failed attempt when I moved to Nairobi, a short-lived stint on Medium, or my most consistent sharing when I trained and ran the full NYC marathon in 2016.

There’s a stubbornness driving this one.

I promise to not let the perfectionist in me re-read every word or sentence a hundred times before I post.

Let’s see how she goes.

Thank you for being here with me.

love, lindy