Autobiography In Five Chapters

Hi all,
I remember reading this back in the day and wanting to vomit. Not because it was bad. On the contrary, because it was so fucking accurate!

It was the mid nineties and not only did my street have a hole, the hole was surrounded by flares and yellow caution tape—and I still fell in!

Not only that, sometimes it felt like a water slide had been constructed on my street, you know, to make direct entry into the hole that much faster and easier.

Show of hands, how many of us have battled that hole for YEARS until finally (by the grace of God) it dawned on us to WALK DOWN ANOTHER STREET?

Let the record show that BOTH of my hands are raised.

If you read this and it doesn’t hit you in that place that makes you slap your forehead, and puke a little in your own mouth…you’re lying.

Carry on,
xox

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Autobiography in Five Chapters
by Portia Nelson

I

I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk
I fall in.
I am lost…
I am hopeless.
It isn’t my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.

II

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don’t see it.
I fall in again.
I can’t believe I’m in the same place.
But it isn’t my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.

III

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in…it’s a habit
My eyes are open; I know where I am;
It is my fault.
I get out immediately.

IV

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.

V

I walk down another street.

Copyright (c) 1993, by Portia Nelson from the book There’s A Hole in My Sidewalk.