Thursday Thread: February, the Month of ❤️... When was the last time you felt truly grokked?
It doesn't have to be romantic. It could be with your bestie or someone unexpected.
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Hello, Lovelies,
So, I’m watching FEUD: Capote vs. The Swans on FX, and, while it’s very hard not to whip out a thread about which Waspy Swan archetype you’d choose, I realize not everyone’s watching it (yet, but wow, is it good—Tom Hollander and Jessica Lange—Chef’s kiss m’wah!!!). Here’s the trailer ICYMI.
—but it IS finally February—the month of love in all its kooky permutations. And there’s a wonderful word when it comes to love and friendship… it’s the word “grok”.
To “grok” someone is to really “get” them or to understand them deep down, on an almost primordial level.
It’s a neologism coined by the American science fiction writer Robert A. Heinlein for his 1961 novel Stranger in a Strange Land, which we can probably all admit to feeling at times in romance as well as our friendships.
But what about you? When was the last time you felt someone really “grok” you?
For me, it was an unexpected present showing up six months ago on my doorstep—something that was so DEEP DOWN ME. Yes, it was a comic book—by the authors Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips, which I think would make a marvelous, gritty Goliath-style series adaptation. It’s full of sass and smarts and darkness and twists and shouts that would make even The Beatles nauseous. At that moment, opening up the book, I thought, this person, who sent it, so groks me… I could love them for the next 30 years and play Bananagrams and write books and look after them and just whatever... I felt so understood for all my quirks and flaws as a person. This is a rare thing.
So, when was the last time you felt someone truly grok you? The smaller the moment, the better. It doesn’t have to be a gift—it could be a passing exchange. I look forward to your stories. Until next time…
🤍🤍🤍 - xoxo - gotham girl
One of my besties. I mentioned her text in my current TST post. Her comment was so apropos of her and how well she knows me (better than my family, apparently). I'm stealing this word.
This question has been nagging me since first coming across it very late last night. It's been far too long since I've felt grokked. Most importantly, I haven't really grokked myself and it's felt like I'm going through the motions.
That's starting to change in a huge way and it feels like I'm coming back to life after a really rough 20 years.
I used to use to term grok with flare. It struck me last night/this morning that it's been absent in my vocabulary. I guess I'm starting to grok myself. Don't know if that's cheating but it feels like a necessary first step.