This is 42 🎉

A literary time capsule to celebrate another swing around the sun.

Welcome to So Relatable, an occasional newsletter that helps creative folks improve their craft, achieve their goals, and eat better snacks. I’m glad you’re here! ✨

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Birthdays are the ultimate holiday, and you will not convince me otherwise. Instead of everyone celebrating the same thing at the same time with a similar set of traditions, birthdays are observed with individual flair.

Some people, like my husband, want to keep their birthday as low key and under the radar as possible. Can you imagine?! My style is a little different. For example, this past Friday (my actual birthday) I took PTO to observe the holiday, attended a morning yoga class, worked on a secret writing project, replied to many delightful text messages, went to a tasting at a wine shop, had dinner at a fancy restaurant, and fell asleep on the couch at 9pm. Ideal! Next weekend I’m throwing my annual birthday party, and I can’t wait to celebrate again with a bunch of people I love.

Until then, here’s my annual literary time capsule, in which I attempt to capture life in this moment, at the tender age of 42. Thank you, as always, for being a part of this day, this year, this life.

This is 42 🎉

Forty-two is community, and the realization that you’re never done building it. Caring—about people, about politics, about the environment, about justice—is hard, but not caring is harder. Forty-two is understanding, finally, that circumstances are constantly changing—life is a back and forth, a give and take, a yes and no and not right now and absolutely, I’d love to. Part of the work and wonder of being in a community—which is to say, of being alive—is meeting people where they are, doing what you can, and holding on to the hope that things will be better soon.

Forty-two is a career. It’s seven years at the same company, which is a very long time, especially in this economy! It’s feeling better about the balance between my corporate and creative lives, and embracing my path in middle management. Forty-two is gratitude for generous mentors and an outstanding group of colleagues-turned-friends, and understanding that what you do matters less than who you do it with.

Forty-two is family—two nephews, two sisters, two parents—and recognizing the patterns they’ve imprinted on me, for better and for worse. It’s a 14-year-old dog, and gratitude for every extra day we get. It’s so many wonderful and lovely friends both near and far, and looking forward to all the new friends I haven’t yet met—there’s always room for more. Forty-two is a solid marriage that still finds ways to surprise me, even after two-plus decades. (My advice: marry an interesting person above all else—you’ll never be bored.)

Forty-two is creativity in all forms. It’s looking beyond the traditional path to publication and considering other roads. Forty-two is a pivot, not a failure. It’s writing and creating for fun and connection instead of money and prestige. It’s remembering how to sketch, sew, stitch, and shape. Forty-two is a return to all the forms I left behind when I thought I could only be one thing.

Forty-two is climbing. Also power yoga and BodyPump and run club, but mostly climbing. It’s dreaming at night of bouldering problems and thinking about how to get stronger on overhangs. It’s joyful movement, growing strength, sweet endorphins, and a dash of vanity (you should see my upper body). Forty-two is a proof that it’s never too late to get obsessed with a new hobby, and the thrill of discovering new things about yourself in the process.

Forty-two is big and small. It’s emotionally preparing for a presidential election, planning a fall full of outdoor adventures, returning overdue books to the library, and walking the dog one slow block at a time. It’s quick and easy dinners, tropical storms, a bumper crop of basil, chickpea salad sandwiches from The Half, heat wave after heat wave, no time to go to the beach, every new item at Trader Joe’s, calloused hands, hot yoga, and finally achieving a positive net worth.

Forty-two is really, really good, and I’m thrilled to be here.

PS: This was 41, and 40, and 39, and 38, and 37.

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Snack Break

Two weeks ago, we drove to an airplane hanger in South Carolina so Nathan could buy a motorcycle off Facebook Marketplace. (Remember what I said about marrying someone interesting? About that…) As a reward for helping him on this fool’s errand, we had lunch at a random vegan restaurant just off the highway and tucked behind a gas station. I ordered the cheesesteak, and you know what? It was delicious. Life is full of surprises.

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Relatable Recommendations

• Watching: Olympic sport climbing (JANJA!) and various YouTube videos about how to become an Olympic sport climber. It’s never too late! (It’s definitely too late.)

• Growing: Tropical Storm Debby destroyed the last of our tomatoes and cucumbers, but the peppers are still standing! We also started phase one of our fall garden—green peas and string beans, which just sprouted. I prefer fall gardening over summer gardening, so I’m very excited to transition.

• Eating: For my birthday dinner, we went to Olivero, a new, very fancy Italian restaurant I’ve been dying to try, and I had lasagna with roasted mushroom bolognese and fontina. Incredible!

• Feeling: Happy, grateful, and a little sore, to be honest! Those Olympians are a bad influence.

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👋 About Me: I’m Chrissy Hennessey, an enthusiastic snacker and native New Yorker living in coastal North Carolina, where I stayed after earning my MFA. My writing has appeared in a decent number of journals, I’ve received fellowships to some fancy residencies, and I’ve written three novels, all currently unpublished. This newsletter is a passion project I started in 2019 as a way to connect with readers and writers, share my creative journey, and build a community. Thank you for being here!