Invoke Your Agency
No Vacation Required
Things that are chuegy in 2025:
Not being your authentic self.
faking harmony to “keep the peace.”
The word cheugy (probably).
Things that are NOT chuegy in 2025:
Redefining family.
Invoking your agency.
An annoying thing happens around the holidays. Every year, advice floods the internet about “protecting” yourself from family members who don’t understand you. In mid-November, I saw one Instagram Story proclaim, “You don’t owe anyone anything. If being yourself around family is too much, just do what you need to do to get through.”
They’re not wrong. You don’t owe anyone anything. And if being your authentic self puts you in harm’s way – physically or psychologically – then, yes, you might need to fake it or grey-rock through a moment.
But this messaging needs an update. It’s time for advice that feels more empowered and forward-thinking. Because let’s be clear: it’s far too easy to confuse “unsafe” with “unpleasant.”
Or scary.
Or difficult.
Or painful.
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