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Rona Maynard's avatar

I am married to a man who is capable of such intense absorption in a project that he forgets to eat until late afternoon, when he is suddenly ravenous. He would never let a guest go hungry. Until I read this, I hadn’t seen this peculiar habit for what it is, a lack of self-care.

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Abra McAndrew's avatar

Very thought-provoking. I love your definition of care— doing the thing that contributes to present and future well-being with the same tenderness and attention you’d do for another. I wondered about that passage: was it the dessert after all the other indulgence, not in and of itself, that was so sad? But also: the woman’s answer does seem to reinforce the idea that it’s superior to include another, rather than to care for one’s own present and future well-being directly. Fascinating!

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