a letter of relational hope

from the fools guide to being a difficult person

Templates are helpful.

Here is a template of how to bring more irrational hope into your relationships. If you’re a difficult person who deals with difficult people that you really care about, feel free to use these words or your version of them with someone you love.

Report back on the impact.

Here’s the script:

I hope you can hear the attempt to reach you. Yes, it’s ever so poorly delivered in a way that highlights all of the things that you find so repugnant and unbearable about me, that on good days you can find a bit of a sad sign of how the world has knocked me about and on days of lessness, can cause you to imagine chewing glass

And yes, you likely find these attempts both self serving and self soothing. They likely are. I’m a hypocrite. In different situations I behave differently. I’m inconsistent and human.

No matter how clumsy, awkward or inappropriate my attempts to connect consistently are, notice the direction. I’m always directing my time and attention toward you.

I promise to consistently have the stamina to keep getting it wrong with you until we eventually figure it out.

I hope you have the stamina to do the same.

Then?

Then you put your thumb on your forehead and wiggle your fingers while making a trumpet noise then shout:

Onweird and Awkweird!