It started out as simple fun.
I was asked if I’d ever done one of those cartoon-style infographics—the kind that maps out a person in one place.
I hadn’t.
So we started with someone else.
That part was easy.
Then the dogs.
Even easier.
Each one had a clear role.
Clear patterns.
Clear ways they showed up.
It didn’t take much thought.
Just notice it, name it, move on.
Then we got to me.
And it slowed down.
Not because I didn’t know what to say.
But because there was more than one answer to everything.
It wasn’t:
this is who I am
It was:
this is who I am here
this is who I am there
this is who I’m still figuring out
None of it felt wrong.
Just… not complete on its own.
Somewhere in the middle of something that was supposed to be “just for fun,”
we noticed something else.
It’s easier to describe someone else than it is to describe yourself.
Not because you don’t know who you are.
But because you see more.
More context.
More versions.
More in-between moments that don’t fit cleanly into one box.
When it’s someone else, you notice patterns.
When it’s you, you notice layers.
And layers take a little longer.
They don’t always land in one sentence.
Or one label.
Or one clean section.
Sometimes they just sit there for a bit.
Not unclear.
Just not rushed.
That part doesn’t get talked about much.
The pause before the answer.
The space where you’re not confused—just still sorting.
But it’s there.
What started as a cartoon ended up being something else.
Not a full answer.
Just a clearer way to look at the question.
