The Authenticity Project

by Clare Pooley

Everyone lies about their lives. What would happen if you shared the truth instead? The one thing that defines you, that makes everything else about you fall into place? Not on the internet, but with those real people around you?

Julian wore his solitude and loneliness like old, ill-fitting shoes. He was used to them—in many ways they had grown comfortable—but over time they were bending him out of shape, causing calluses and bunions that would never go away.

Then he’d discovered that routines were crucial. They created buoys he could cling to to keep himself afloat.

Monica went to make his coffee, feeling like she’d just been awarded ten points for Gryffindor.

Preparation is the key to effective spontaneity. Not that any of that had worked so far, thought Monica, remembering Duncan, the bee-loving vegan. She prodded that thought, like checking a sore tooth, to see if it still hurt. Nothing but a dull ache. Well done, Monica.

“Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift,” she’d chant to herself as she brushed her teeth. “It’s not happy people who are grateful, it’s grateful people who are happy,” she’d say as she brushed her hair.

Painting is self-discovery. Every good painter paints what he is. He said it’s about expressing your feelings, not just illustrating.

Sometimes you didn’t want a room to make a statement or to say anything about you, you just wanted it to shut up and be a room.