My two year old is in the hospital. It has been such a journey of hope and disappointment that we are tempted to lose the hope and plan on the disappointment. Thanks for the reminder to try again for the hope.
I love this sentiment. I used to be afraid to say I wanted to be an author. I wanted it so very badly it was like a physical pain, and if no one knew how much pain I would be in to fail, I would be protected. Of course, that's nonsense. Now I am vocal about it and go figure, selling more books than ever.
My older sister had a balloon she really loved when she was a really little kid and she had all these plans about the adventures her and her balloon would go on and then the balloon popped within like a day and I wasn't even born when that story happened but it makes me so incredibly sad 😭😭 this comic feels targeted at me lol.
This is so helpful, especially for trying to explain why being hopeful about the future isn't for me. I don't want to envision the future. I want to leave it blank. I don't want to imagine positive outcomes, because if they don't happen, I will be devastated.
I don't understand how the NT mind works that it's helpful for them to envision positive things. Do they just not get as attached to their visions and they don't get as devastated if they don't come true?
I'm in love with a friend who most likely doesn't feel that way about me. I rarely connect with people like I connect with her. My instinct is to hate the feelings, because the disappointment will be so cutting. It's the disappointment but also finding a purpose for the empty space left behind when hope has been taken away that is so difficult.
Quite a long time ago by now, I saw a game trailer that really resonated with me. However, internal power struggles at the company behind the game made it so that the guy leading the development had his passion projects put in development hell... After the company had thrown several years worth of time and copious amounts of money on other games that got lukewarm receptions at best but that the leaders of the company promoted due to the internal power struggles, that guy was eventually allowed to start development after all... only to be removed from the game development soon thereafter and have his passion project given to another person at the company who got better along with the higher ups... When the game was finally re-revealed, it had completely changed... and when it was finally released, 10 years after it was first announced, the game was not only incomplete, it wasn't even the game I had been waiting for any longer... By then I had spent about 1/3rd of my life tempering my excitement just to save myself from disappointment... but the thing about the human brain is that it's like the rest of your body: When you train it at doing something, it gets better at doing those things... Since I had tried to save myself from disappointment, it didn't learn how to deal with disappointment. Instead, it got good at killing off excitement whenever I started feeling giddy. And with everything else going on in the world during those years (e.g., the Iraq war) all my brain got really good at was being sad and depressed.
Disappointment may be painful, and as a result we may try to quell our excitement and desires so that we can spare ourselves that disappointment... But when we do that, we instead train ourselves to not get hyped, but to just expect disappointment all the time... And, speaking from personal experience, that's basically the exact opposite of the disappointment-coping skill we actually want to have.
I-- Some of these last few panels really resonate and hurt and soothe all at the same time - notably as someone who struggles immensely to understand and articulate their own wants, and has a hard time computing changes/deviation from whatever outcome they envisioned. The timing here is particularly right, though.
I-- I. I write this each time, but I mean it each time: thank you, for writing these.
(Also these eyes remind me of the intense shark eyes comic for some reason)
My two year old is in the hospital. It has been such a journey of hope and disappointment that we are tempted to lose the hope and plan on the disappointment. Thanks for the reminder to try again for the hope.
I can't help thinking of that immortal tweet from like 2016 where you said "I wanted this."
I hope this turns out like that time ❤️
I love this sentiment. I used to be afraid to say I wanted to be an author. I wanted it so very badly it was like a physical pain, and if no one knew how much pain I would be in to fail, I would be protected. Of course, that's nonsense. Now I am vocal about it and go figure, selling more books than ever.
This is bittersweet and lovely. Hope is a delicate, fragile thing
My older sister had a balloon she really loved when she was a really little kid and she had all these plans about the adventures her and her balloon would go on and then the balloon popped within like a day and I wasn't even born when that story happened but it makes me so incredibly sad 😭😭 this comic feels targeted at me lol.
This is so helpful, especially for trying to explain why being hopeful about the future isn't for me. I don't want to envision the future. I want to leave it blank. I don't want to imagine positive outcomes, because if they don't happen, I will be devastated.
I don't understand how the NT mind works that it's helpful for them to envision positive things. Do they just not get as attached to their visions and they don't get as devastated if they don't come true?
(In a very different tone, I'm sorry but I can't picture this ice cream falling in any other way than the one from Lilo & Stitch)
I resonate with this so deeply, and reading it felt cathartic in a way I didn’t expect. Thanks so much for sharing 🖤
I'm in love with a friend who most likely doesn't feel that way about me. I rarely connect with people like I connect with her. My instinct is to hate the feelings, because the disappointment will be so cutting. It's the disappointment but also finding a purpose for the empty space left behind when hope has been taken away that is so difficult.
gat dang. beautiful writing.
Wow. Another one that’s very relatable. And that bit about the cards… :(
Like so much art, as I project my own thoughts and dreams (never shared) onto this short comic, I feel less alone.
Quite a long time ago by now, I saw a game trailer that really resonated with me. However, internal power struggles at the company behind the game made it so that the guy leading the development had his passion projects put in development hell... After the company had thrown several years worth of time and copious amounts of money on other games that got lukewarm receptions at best but that the leaders of the company promoted due to the internal power struggles, that guy was eventually allowed to start development after all... only to be removed from the game development soon thereafter and have his passion project given to another person at the company who got better along with the higher ups... When the game was finally re-revealed, it had completely changed... and when it was finally released, 10 years after it was first announced, the game was not only incomplete, it wasn't even the game I had been waiting for any longer... By then I had spent about 1/3rd of my life tempering my excitement just to save myself from disappointment... but the thing about the human brain is that it's like the rest of your body: When you train it at doing something, it gets better at doing those things... Since I had tried to save myself from disappointment, it didn't learn how to deal with disappointment. Instead, it got good at killing off excitement whenever I started feeling giddy. And with everything else going on in the world during those years (e.g., the Iraq war) all my brain got really good at was being sad and depressed.
Disappointment may be painful, and as a result we may try to quell our excitement and desires so that we can spare ourselves that disappointment... But when we do that, we instead train ourselves to not get hyped, but to just expect disappointment all the time... And, speaking from personal experience, that's basically the exact opposite of the disappointment-coping skill we actually want to have.
I needed to hear this right now. Thank you.
I-- Some of these last few panels really resonate and hurt and soothe all at the same time - notably as someone who struggles immensely to understand and articulate their own wants, and has a hard time computing changes/deviation from whatever outcome they envisioned. The timing here is particularly right, though.
I-- I. I write this each time, but I mean it each time: thank you, for writing these.
(Also these eyes remind me of the intense shark eyes comic for some reason)
Why is this so real and fitting to now in particular. You managed so well to capture this feeling. Thank you Nate <3