Leafing through older diary entries, I’m shocked at some of the unkind and occasionally quite extreme things I’ve said in the past; for instance about certain groups or individuals I actually rather admire today. I genuinely don’t recognise the person saying those things as myself. A lot of it just hints at jejune envy at others’ success, which is probably close to the truth. It would be rather Orwellian to revise those old words to fit the person writing this entry today, so I’ll resist the temptation and let them stand. All you can do is hope that people bother to check with you today before presuming you still hold a certain opinion voiced years ago. I voted Labour then, after all. The world changes, and some parts of people change.
I’m not the DE of 1997, that’s for certain. Whether this is for better or for worse is up to others. I’d certainly never dare to say I’m a ‘better person’ now. It’d be like saying David Tennant is the best Doctor Who (though I think he is). Or that ‘Match Point’ is the best Woody Allen film. One man’s development and experimentation is another man’s inconsistency. But the other man is a fool. I feel it’s like inheriting a wardrobe of clothes from an ancestor, and choosing which garments not only fit you, but can represent you. And which bits you chuck out.
Onwards and upwards is the only way to think. After all, my only sibling gets married tomorrow.
