I thought this was a brilliant idea from Rory from the outset and vowed to contribute immediately. I found it surprisingly difficult even as (or because?) I was inspired by the wisdom, profundity, starkness, humour and sheer brilliant of others.
How on earth to say ‘who I am’ at all, let alone on a public, all-seeing forum? Depending on the year, the day, the perspective, the mood, I can be many things. So here it is – from numerous perspectives, some amazingly perceptive, others deeply-held truths, others still grossly unfair or ill-informed assumptions. Who I am, what I do, unapologetically full of contradictions, silences and deliberate or accidental ‘truths’.
I am:
One of life’s do-ers.
A bit of a chameleon – different things at different times.
Exactly what you see – authentic to the core.
High-octane.
Utterly reliable.
Persistently, sometimes irritatingly optimistic.
Not a fan of routine.
A (sometimes tedious) over-thinker.
A believer in people.
Rather naïve.
A breath of fresh air.
Moody and unpredictable.
A leftie.
Of the opinion that Russell Brand’s views are dangerous and irresponsible.
Really rather eccentric (what’s she doing now?)
Fiercely righteous.
A bit needy.
A former cat-lover (til they started using the kids’ bed as a toilet)
A non-conformist.
Infinitely loyal.
Self-righteous.
Rather shy.
Fiercely independent.
A chatterer.
A never-giver-uper.
A bit skittish.
Stubborn as hell.
Rubbish at housework.
Always wiling to do what I demand of others.
Fundamentally happy.
A worrier and a brooder.
A can-do-er.
On it, Miss Man.
That teacher who understood.
A bit of a cynic.
Still in touch with students from a decade ago.
The person who ‘made [someone] a better teacher’.
A bit intense.
Passionate and enthusiastic.
Bare deep.
A grammar fiend.
Increasingly able to see the funny side, the darker the better.
Inclined to want people to like me and act accordingly.
One of life’s enablers.
Sporadically sporty.
A Radio 4 addict.
Hyper and lacking in an off-switch.
A worshipper of sleep.
An inspiration to some.
A crutch to some.
Mum to many.
Not as ambitious as I could have been.
Full of adventure.
Opposed to physical risk.
Vaguely musical.
Allergic to DIY.
A romantic.
A pragmatist realist.
Inept at singing and dancing.
More focused and centred with age.
Fiercely ambitious.
Passionately committed to comprehensive education.
Utterly accepting.
Garbled and verbose.
Thoroughly blessed.
Infinitely giving – not always to the right people at the right times.
Self-indulgent.
A nail-biter.
A fan of sparkly nail-varnish.
A hater of superficiality and artifice.
Rather silly.
Completely lacking in fashion-sense.
A lover of the city.
A Home Counties dweller.
Devoted to clothes which show me as I am.
A liability in high-heels.
A traveller.
Someone who hasn’t been beyond France since having children.
A bon-viveur.
Always first to skulk to bed.
Full of spontaneity.
A teenager at heart.
In possession of a few of my zebra stripes or a little wisdom.
A hater of a paper.
A bibliophile.
A rare-wearer of make-up.
A regular changer of hairstyle.
A people-pleaser.
An office-hater.
A Berlin-lover.
Happiest in direct proportion to amount of time spent with people under 18.
I am a mother, wife, friend and a teacher.
I am a do-my-best and strive-to-believe-it’s-good-enough-er.
Those that can... 