During the visit from Queer Van Kult, I asked if they would describe themselves as successful. Zoe responded and said that she wouldn’t yet described the collective as such and went on to describe other milestones that needed to be reached before they could claim the term. It was interesting to me because from the outside looking in, I would’ve disagreed.
I believe that when asked about success a lot of times people focus on the pinnacle of it versus seeing it as a journey, that still allows them to claim success even when things haven’t full peaked yet. I’m beginning to realize that collectively, we don’t give ourselves enough credit or grace when it comes to realizing our accomplishments. It’s very easy to complete one goal and move on to the next. It’s a lot harder to sit in the success of your foundational goals, even when a previous version of you could only see the next step. I think that through Zoe’s answer along with my own reflections on success, I’m learning to view success a bit differently. Accomplishments are fleeting, but the journey to get there is what actually lasts.
