Beguiled 2025
The year has not necessarily been the kindest to me - then again, when has it? I know, I know, my first blog post in a while and it’s whining about life again. In our particular community, full of wonderful and loving and also marginalized individuals, I don’t know many who have found much solace over the last many months. I seek happiness and love and connection and community despite it all, a gentle, caring version of resistance I often encourage others to do. And sometimes, I listen to myself!
I find myself in the privileged position of having attended many hypnocons over the years. I’ve experienced high highs and low lows, often over the course of a single packed weekend. I’ve met community leaders and content creators I looked up to. (I’ve even managed to become one!) I’ve met new people at just about every con that have become comforting familiar faces in the hallways. I’ve met dear friends that I look forward to seeing once or twice a year. I met my partner. Over the years, I met a community full of people who are unapologetically themselves, who sought better lives for themselves, who taught me lessons that I carry on and emulate now in my day to day life.
I am humbled and grateful that even after all this time, I can still have weekends that I can call the best time that I’ve had. There is an exhilarating but anxious rush at these cons - so many classes to attend, evening events to check out, people to see, scenes to do. Once upon a time I thought I wasn’t much longer for the con going community, didn’t have a place anymore; now I see that I’d simply lost track of the advice that I used to give others.
I’ll make a more personal and specific con post soon, but wanted to make this general one for posterity’s sake. Sometimes, people dig up old con posts of mine that I don’t even remember writing, that come from different versions of myself. Sometime in the future yet, I’m sure I’ll grow doubtful and question whether I still belong. At that time, I hope I find this post again, an ever reminder that I’m a fucking idiot that needs to stop being so anxious, but also, a reminder that there will always be good times to be had — if only I’ll reach back out for it.
