Life

The new season of Shrinking is out, and I just adore this show. Although it contains some lewd humor that I sometimes find excessive, it’s a beautiful, captivating show overall. Watching the portrayal of therapy gives me a good chuckle now and then, and continuing to journey alongside these characters is a gift. As I watched last night's new episode, I wondered why I liked this show so much.

And I realized it’s because it normalizes the chaos, the ups and downs, and the inevitabilities of life.

Sometimes, it’s nice to escape. To drop into a fantasy land that’s nothing like what we go through here in our day-to-day lives. And then, at other times, it’s nice to know that nobody escapes the inevitabilities of life.

Along with watching Shrinking, I’ve had the Olympics on each day. Like much of the world, I was excited to watch what Lindsey Vonn would accomplish. Already coming out of retirement and making a comeback was impressive enough, but to hear she was going to keep competing with a torn ACL from a race the week prior was shocking. Unfortunately, her final run ended in a crash that caused a complex tibia fracture.

But what she wrote about it was inspiring. She said, “It wasn’t a storybook ending or a fairy tale, it was just life.”

I think we so often, because of social media and the other things we consume, we want the spectacular. We want the good, the vibrant, the highlight reel. And there’s nothing wrong with that. It would have been crazy to watch Lindsey Vonn medal in this event. It would have been a story for the ages.

But I appreciate that she sums up what happened as life. Because that is so true. When things go wrong, when life isn’t all wins and riding the peaks, it isn’t because you aren’t good enough. Or because you aren’t worthy of good things. Or that you don’t deserve to succeed. It’s because life is an inevitable roller coaster of both ups and downs.

Nobody stays on top of the mountain, nobody escapes life unscathed, nobody has a perfect day, day in and day out. And that’s why I tune into Shrinking every week. That’s why I love watching an athlete win the gold medal, but I’m also always looking at the other athletes in the background. Because it feels comforting to know that the pain, heartbreak, and difficulties we face in life aren’t because we’ve necessarily done anything wrong.

It was all just life.