OpenCon 2011
I'm writing this from bed, shattered, shortly after getting back from OpenCon. Last year, OpenCon changed the way I saw my life and gave me strength and faith in path I was on. This year I was hoping it would do the same for a friend but it wasn't to be and they never made it to the event.
For me this year was mainly about healing and being amongst people who I'd consider friends. I was, I'm afraid, very disinclined to reach out for new interactions and even people I would like to have talked to at length I didn't really feel I had the energy to engage with. Even so, there was a lot of talking, of thinking and soul-searching, and some self-discovery or at least acceptance of new strands of my poly identity.
Perhaps the most positive moment was during the goodbyes talking to someone in the early stages of opening up a previously mono relationship. He told me that they'd found the event helpful, and specifically hearing me and my wife talk about what we'd been through, where we were, and how we were still making things work even when it was hard inspired them to believe that poly really could work for them too.
Again, I come away from the event inclined to be more visibly and openly poly and to help raise awareness and hope that it helps other people have a smoother ride. Poly may not be for everyone, but for those of us who are made this way it can be daunting and lonely, surrounded by voices telling us we're mad for trying. The journey is hard enough in itself without having to figure everything out for yourself while surrounded almost exclusively by doubting voices.
For me this year was mainly about healing and being amongst people who I'd consider friends. I was, I'm afraid, very disinclined to reach out for new interactions and even people I would like to have talked to at length I didn't really feel I had the energy to engage with. Even so, there was a lot of talking, of thinking and soul-searching, and some self-discovery or at least acceptance of new strands of my poly identity.
Perhaps the most positive moment was during the goodbyes talking to someone in the early stages of opening up a previously mono relationship. He told me that they'd found the event helpful, and specifically hearing me and my wife talk about what we'd been through, where we were, and how we were still making things work even when it was hard inspired them to believe that poly really could work for them too.
Again, I come away from the event inclined to be more visibly and openly poly and to help raise awareness and hope that it helps other people have a smoother ride. Poly may not be for everyone, but for those of us who are made this way it can be daunting and lonely, surrounded by voices telling us we're mad for trying. The journey is hard enough in itself without having to figure everything out for yourself while surrounded almost exclusively by doubting voices.