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A New Persona

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Clarissa

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I just bought tickets to go to Montreal. With Klara. On an airplane.

I so want to be more like those adventurous, strong women who see no problem in traveling with a single, moderately rambunctious toddler. I really admire women who are less sheltered and who don’t see every trip to a new supermarket as an adventure requiring days of planning and mental preparation.

When I was learning to speak Spanish, I pretended that I was the kind of person who wasn’t terrified to speak in class and who could easily share things about her life with strangers. And after pretending for a while, I actually became that person. So I’m hoping that if I adopt the persona of this more adventurous woman who isn’t intimidated by new experiences, maybe it will grow on me.

11 responses to “A New Persona”

  1. Michael Blekhman Avatar
    Michael Blekhman

    To say that it’s great news is to say nothing!!!!!!!!

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  2. Socal dendrite Avatar
    Socal dendrite

    Yes! I do the “pretend until it becomes real” thing too. And I bet plenty of other women will look at you and see an “adventurous, strong women who see no problem in traveling with a single, moderately rambunctious toddler”, just as, I bet, many of those women you admire are not so confident inside, or have plenty of days when things don’t go so smoothly.

    I took my eldest from California to Manchester, UK by myself when he was 13 months old. It was for my sister’s wedding, otherwise there is no way I would have done it. I won’t pretend the outbound flight went smoothly – I essentially had to hold him while standing for most of the 11 hour flight – but nobody on the red-eye flight gave me any grief about it. And the point is: we survived and you will too, whether it goes smoothly or not 🙂 I was dreading the return (daytime flight) but that was actually very relaxing: he played with a cup and bottle down by my feet for hours and conveniently napped at exactly the right time so I go to eat. So, you never can tell.

    I wish you happy journeys and a wonderful trip. I am sure Klara will enjoy seeing how different everything is in Montreal, even at such a young age.

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    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      California to Manchester! You are an inspiration. I feel more confident I can do it now because this whole trip will be just 5 hours.

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      1. Socal dendrite Avatar
        Socal dendrite

        I only did it because I love my sister! I still remember working up a sweat sprinting through the airport with the stroller because we got held up at check-in and security. I imagine I looked frazzled rather than adventurous and strong, hehe. But the trip made for good stories. We’re going back this summer for the first time since then, this time with two kids (20 mo and 4) but also with my husband which, as you say, makes all the difference. Don’t forget to blog about the trip!

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        1. Clarissa Avatar
          Clarissa

          I’m going because of my sister, too!! ☺☺

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  3. cliff arroyo Avatar
    cliff arroyo

    Will this be your new theme song?

    The term is ‘fake it until you make it’.

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    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      Less bitching, more pitching!

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  4. Shakti Avatar
    Shakti

    You’ll be fine. My mother traveled with me and my brother by herself to India when we were both toddlers (2 & 3 years old).

    I seem to remember you traveling with Klara on a plane before.

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    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      That was with N, though. It’s easy with a partner.

      Your mother is very cool, though.

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  5. Emmagale Avatar
    Emmagale

    “I so want to be more like those adventurous, strong women who see no problem in traveling with a single, moderately rambunctious toddler. ”

    This is funny because my toddler has been on more flights at age 3 than I can count, including a trip to Canada and two to Jordan. Most of these, including the international ones, were just with me, yet I would never describe myself in this way. So you’ll be fine :-).

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    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      I’m getting very inspired and energized in this thread. Thank you!

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