So, I just got off a call about ghosting and I wanted to extend this idea to a strategy that has actually worked for me when you come across new people or when out of the blue stuff like ghosting happens. Capitalizing off of @Elizabeth Ingalsbe and her post, this is a similar type of thing but removing a scale entirely. People are just that people at least to me. Anyone can lie, cheat etc. Just like anyone can also do good giving, caring etc. I think the razor here is consistent behaviour and wether the do eventually respond because people also get wrapped up in personal shit. When you stay in a neutral state and don’t hold people up when it isn’t warranted, then I feel like the pitfall is less harmful, not that you shouldn’t care about them, but that you should prioritize and respect your peace before letting someone in. Any thoughts on this?

Do you ever find yourself awake at 2 a.m. wondering if you’re still a recurring character in someone else’s story? My brain does this from time to time, usually starting with something specific like my Grad Night date at Disneyland in the late ’80s. I wonder if she ever thinks of me, or if I’ve been entirely edited out of her personal history. Then the spiral continues to former coworkers, old crushes, and people I haven't spoken to in decades. It is a strange realization that we all carry around these mental ghosts of people who have moved on to entirely different lives. I find the inevitable fade into obscurity kind of liberating. People get so worked up about legacies and being remembered forever, but I have decided to keep my final resting place a secret. If I am going to be the person, like 99% of the rest of us, whose grave eventually no one visits, I would rather just be a permanent mystery than a forgotten landmark. I have even put it in my will that my body is to be composted and distributed in a secret place known only to one person. Does your brain ever take you down these rabbit holes, or are you better at staying in the present than I am? (Image created with ChatGPT.)