Self Portrait

A recent conversation with an acquaintance got me thinking about the word “audacity”. Personally, I like the word as it pertains to challenging the oppressive status quos, in being your own person and not caring about what others think. Audacity was not actually used in said conversation, it was implied, but in a way that seemed backhanded. The conversation went like this:

Person: You’re really confident.
Me: Thank you?
Person: You own up to everything. Good for you for not caring about what others think.

Big hair = full of secrets!

Was that a compliment? I don’t know. Was this person implying that my self-confidence, an anomaly that shouldn’t happen to someone like me or looks like me? I rarely cared about what others thought of me, but it is not due to confidence. I’m just tired of having to make myself more palatable to people who care so little about me.

I’ve spent some time thinking about what this person said, and what he meant. Not because his approval mattered, but because I’d like to know if he was insulting me. Then I’ll know how I should feel or react around this person.