An ode to Thought Catalog

I am addicted to Thought Catalog. It gives me a feeling of solidarity with the world. It reassures me that I am not crazy, and not alone - both of which I have begun to feel very frequently of late. If I ever thought that my teenage years were full of confusion and uncertainties, that is nothing - NOTHING compared to my twenties. It's much the same anyway, and I don't know if this is just me but I'm struggling with pretty much the same kind of things - not knowing where my life is going, liking people who don't like me back, being utterly confused by peoples' reactions. The only difference, is that along with the same uncertainties there is an extra sense of guilt.

I feel like by this time I should be smarter, and more sorted, I should have different problems than I did when I was 15, nearly a decade ago. There is a n underlying feeling of scorn and shame that I don't have it all figured out by now. Everywhere I look, I see people who are well on their way to successful careers, my friends have gotten a couple of promotions already; some are married, and an increasingly large number of them get engaged every day; some have moved to different cities, or countries; and all of them excitedly share their perfect lives with the world. And I am single, still living at home, and not 6 months old at my first job. Not even sure that I really am done studying, second-guessing my decision to quit my research degree. 

And this is why I am in awe of the people who write for Thought Catalog. They don't have it figured out either, and they aren't afraid to say it. They tell the stories of their mistakes and their messes with a warm, funny, self-deprecating humour that endears them to me, and I'm sure to their other readers too. Like me, they're braving their way through these twenties, hoping that at the other end, there is clarity and stability. They talk about what they learnt and what they didn't; what they did right and what they didn't; the people they hurt and the people who hurt them. 

Much has been said about the one-dimensionalness of TC articles - that they have the same repetitive stilted way of writing, are targeted at bored, jaded, neo-bohemian and narcissistic twenty-somethings, and have the mandatory pop culture references. These assertions might well be true, but if something makes you feel better about the world, why knock it? So many times I've been  been astounded when I read an essay that sounds like something I might have written, if I got that tone down pat. It's stopped me from feeling stunted and alienated, and reaffirmed my faith in things. That isn't a small feat.

I'd love to make someone a fellow twenty-something feel better about the world. It would be very noble.