This started out as a podcast...

A birth story

Nov 04, 2024

The year is 2022.

I was having a conversation with a former colleague, expressing my frustration with working a completely dead-end job that left me deeply uninspired and blocked my creative sinuses, and in the spirit of solutions, she recommended that I start a podcast.

In the era of unsolicited opinions and endless mic chatter on the most random or niche topics mankind ever had the misfortune of conjuring, I somehow, for some reason, agreed to start a podcast.

Hear me out.

I was in an absolute mindscrew about creating and subsequently preserving my creative outlet, and a podcast seemed like the right idea at the time, for a couple of reasons:

I had always been told to do some type of work with my voice, and I did; voiceovers, singing, audiobook narration, etc. A podcast did seem like the logical next step, considering that it fundamentally combined the two things I enjoy, research and writing, and so, the next day on my lunch break, I went to Computer Village and got a mic. It was a fairly simple setup; connect to your phone directly, record episodes, pump out blurbs and hit send.

Coming up with the name “On Being” was even easier.

I have always been fascinated by the French words “Être” and “Avoir” because these words fundamentally are expressions of our existence, let us call them philosophical cornerstones that express aspects of human existence.

"Être"(roughly translated as ‘to be’) encapsulates identity, essence, and states of being, defining who or what something is and its place in the world. It connects us to time, space, and the very nature of reality. "Avoir," (‘to have’) on the other hand, connects us to possession, ownership, and experiences, describing human relationships with objects, emotions, and other people.

In simpler words, these linguistic markers allow us express the full spectrum of our existence, and the podcast, now rebranded as these letters, was an anthropological experiment where I explored concepts related to existence (talk about never running out of content, lol)

Subtle foreshadowing: I never used the mic for one day in my life. My sister has it now.

There is something to be said for all the incredible ways our mind betrays us when we set out to do something. I technically had all I needed; a name, content tracks, a banner designed pro bono by Esther, a sweetheart who bought the dip on my potential, one that never took off, I guess until now? Point being, I just couldn’t and shelved the idea until 2024.

The year is 2024

Kicking off the year, I got into mindmapping as an alternative to resolutions mostly because it offered more clarity in terms of action to result synergy, and in the thick of it, On Being fell off the dusty shelves of my mind, straight into my hands and I made a decision. Granted, it took me 11 months to get there, but I’m nothing if not a late bloomer, and so, 2 years later, here we are.

In terms of what I envision for these letters and for you the readers, it’s simple; On Being is how I connect with feelings I’m hoping you relate to, because, let’s face it…we are practically living slightly different versions of the same life and there is no distinct human experience.

I hope you stick around because in my next letter, I will be writing about “Hopium, Copium, Silver Linings and Other Assorted Lies We Tell Ourselves”