dura mater

digging into boundary work

as a scientifically curious human, i'm frequently amazed by the tiny synchronicities and parallels amongst and between otherwise unconnected bits of matter--the striking similarity of the trachea, bronchi, and bronchioles to a river delta as seen from space--the way a colorized nebula can resemble the intricate webbing an iris--as above, so below. one of the gifts of this fascination is the ability to think in metaphor, to conceive of "this thing" as if it were "that thing" and to experience a deepened curiosity and an expanded sense of understanding as a result.

one thing that's been on my mind a lot is the idea of boundaries, and i think there are many reasons why this is the case. on a social level, proximity to the holidays means that my social media feeds are flooded with "home for the holidays horror stories" of unsolicited body commentary and expression of judgement or non-acceptance of lifestyle and identity by family members (both well meaning and ill).

if great aunt fanny asked you, "do you really think a second serving is smart?" (complete with suggestive up-down eyeballing), i'm sorry that happened to you. your body deserves to be respected, and she didn't have the right to say that to you.

if creepy uncle george told you, "i just h