The End of Seeking External Validation
Have you considered a man cleanse?
“We had so much fun, but we were so toxic. So now I’m back on Tinder.”
I exhale — somewhere between a sigh and a calming, yogic breath — and look across the twinkly-light-lit patio at the friend whose Tarot I’m currently reading. Her attention is split between me, the cards, and her shiny iPhone where, I have no doubt, the next swipe awaits.
Her cards point blatantly to an unhappy partnership built on beer foam and combustive chemistry, and a woman who definitely knows better, but misses the chaos.
She was a seeker of love, truly and deeply craving it. My heart broke for her.
And I wanted to smack her.
Instead, I inhale and ask:
“Have you considered a man cleanse?”
I’ve made many poor, man-adjacent decisions. The Aussie I took off with into the night (and woods) in Whistler after knowing him for all of 30 seconds. The neurotic neighbor with whom I had an ill-advised fling. The friend I spent years on a merry-go-round with, never quite getting anywhere. The photographer-slash-dealer I remained smitten with through most of my early twenties.
The list goes on.
