Introducing: The Re-Parenting Series

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It’s no surprise that one of my big passions is personal development (as it’s a main pillar of what I talk about in many of my posts!). While things like therapy and “glowing-up” have seemed to come into fashion more recently, I’ve danced with personal development and behavioral psychology as personal topics of interest for more than a decade now, ever since undertaking my own journey to reset my mindset and cultivate self-love.

In line with this, I’m finally launching this series that has been on my mind for a quite some time now: The Re-Parenting Series.

We all know that the bulk of who we are comes from the influences that we had in our youth, namely by our parental/guardian figures and our environment. But like I talk about in my post ‘Dear Fellow 20-Somethings: We Owe It To Ourselves To Fix Ourselves’—how we’ve been shaped by our life circumstances up until now does not have to be the permanent form we maintain going forward. Because growth and maturing, in my opinion, isn’t merely a matter of passively “growing up”; rather, it’s largely an intentional shift to take on the continuous act of parenting and re-parenting ourselves. Experiencing life, learning, un-learning, and making adjustments accordingly–this is what stepping into our own requires of each and every one of us.

This series is going to focus on different areas and aspects which I have found (either through myself and/or others) hold great opportunities for Re-Parenting ourselves. They will range from topics like money habits and navigating relationships (both friendly and romantic), to self-imposed traditions and shame. Everyone’s mileage with each topic will vary: maybe you will recognize one about something that you implicitly absorbed from your familial environments but doesn’t serve you and your goals; while another will be your virgin voyage with me down the rabbit hole of a concept that you never learned, but see could definitely benefit you in your life journey. In any case, hopefully these discussions will stimulate thought on areas that you can choose to actively Re-Parent yourself.

As I post, I will welcome input about topic recommendations! This series is just as much for me as it is for anyone else–so thanks in advance for coming along with me through it!

The Art of Repetition

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The Art of Repetition

I couldn’t help but notice van Gogh’s works, namely the numerous ones that were of sunflowers. There were a number of them, many capturing different vantage points of the same flora: sunflowers in dark lighting, sunflowers in the sun; withering cut sunflowers, field of sunflowers, etc. There was a clear fixation on the flower; and some might have looked at his repetitive renditions and thought it to be a manifestation of his mania (which he did struggle with). But I recognized something else–perhaps I could call it the “art within the art”–that being, the art of practice.

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On Community

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On Community

However, somehow both slowly and all at once, I’ve become preoccupied with this idea of community. Maybe it came about from setting up life in a new city amidst a pandemic, knowing no one and faced with establishing connections from scratch during a time when people were intentionally creating distance between one another. Or, it could be due to the loss of a long-term best friend that took me by surprise and left me with almost no one to confide in. Or, maybe it was the 3am health crisis that my roommate had; and as he laid seizing on our apartment floor, despite being in a building full of people, I felt myself at a loss on who I could call on for help.

Whatever the cause, community is at the top of my mind in ways that it has never been for me before.

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A Trip To Peru (WITHOUT Machu Picchu?!): The Logistics

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A Trip To Peru (WITHOUT Machu Picchu?!): The Logistics

In my previous post, I shared about a portion of my travels with my sister in Peru: the extraordinary day trip that we got to take through Peru’s Sacred Valley. But when I talk about this trip with people in-person, I get more questions about the more basic aspects of the travels. So here I’ve attempted to compile some answers to the logistics of our overall voyage; hopefully it can help inform your next trip to the area!

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Visiting Peru’s Sacred Valley (Sans-Machu Picchu)

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Visiting Peru’s Sacred Valley (Sans-Machu Picchu)

When us outsiders think about Peru, most minds will likely automatically arrive first to one name: Machu Picchu. And it’s understandable; the 15th-century Incan city ruins is the country’s most visited site, attracting tourists as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. But Machu Picchu is actually just one of a number of archeological and cultural sites that sit within the area north of the Incan capital of Cusco, known as Valle Sagrado de los Incas–The Sacred Valley of the Incas.

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Emotions, Unfulfilled Dreams, & More: Some thoughts on 'Creed III'

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Emotions, Unfulfilled Dreams, & More: Some thoughts on 'Creed III'

I should admit–this movie had not been on my radar to see at all. Sure, I had seen it around here and there; but the title didn’t mean as much to me as it would to someone who is avid Michael B. Jordan fan (considering that this film marked his directorial debut), or to someone else who enjoyed growing up following the Rocky franchise (I actually didn’t know the Creed trilogy was born from the ‘Rocky’ movies until later). Despite this, I somehow found myself among the moviegoers in theaters to see it on its opening weekend. I had no background or expectations going in–but I was surprised that I quite enjoyed the movie, namely for some themes that it engaged with that I wanted to share my thoughts on here.

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Finding New Hobbies As An Adult

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Finding New Hobbies As An Adult

I don’t really have any hobbies.🙇🏽‍♀️

I was forced to face the music on this recently due to two things. One of such being dating apps–because there’s no escaping the dreaded questions of “What are your hobbies?” or “What do you do in your free time?” The other thing that made me realize my lack of hobbies was living in a different country, in the middle of nowhere. I’ve had previous extended stays outside of the US; but during my other travels, I was usually in big cities, where it was easy to find random things to fill up my time. But while residing in the mountainous northern countryside of South Korea–far from the city and having pretty few opportunities to interact with others (as my area basically comprised of children, soldiers, and elderly folks)–I realized: I don’t have anything concrete that I like to do.

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Everybody is going through something.

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Everybody is going through something.

This world is filled with so many things. Of course, there’s the joyous and the fascinating, the wondrous and the awe-inspiring. But there’s also a lot of the difficult, less-sparkly things as well–certainly more than any one of us even take into consideration on a daily basis. And these days, I can’t help but to think about all the heavy moments that a person can see during their lifetime.

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My Online Dating Profiles Are My App-Sized Love Letters to Myself

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My Online Dating Profiles Are My App-Sized Love Letters to Myself

I’m gonna go ahead and out myself on something here:

I love making dating app profiles.

Don’t get me wrong–dating apps are a special kind of hell, and between modern technology and a global pandemic, dating in this current day and age is, unequivocally, the ghetto (as well as a twisted gamification of human interactions…but that’s a gripe for another day).

You may have read that and thought, ‘Well gosh, someone’s vain’. And you know what–I’ll take that assessment, any day of the week. Because there was a long period of my life when I could have never claimed such confidence–and I live in constant awe and gratitude to have been able to emerge from those dark times and sit on the opposite side of the confidence spectrum.

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