With that new approach, the scene began to sing. I asked myself, “What new moment can I discover? What new item can I find in his bag of works? How can I respond to him differently?” This felt like freedom. Jamie had thrown me a lifeline. People-pleasing and perfectionism were still signature parts of my personality—the shape-shifting I’d learned as a child had created in me a desire to get it “right” instead of digging for the unknown.
