Becoming Myself

I briefly narrated how I accidentally stumbled upon a masterpiece of autobiography titled Becoming Myself in my now old essay on a Kubrick movie. I read the first chapters of the psychiatrist’s memoir from an e-book in 2022 – I suppose the most powerful one-third, as was suggested by the feedback given to Yalom himself in his literature group – and continued the remaining two-thirds slowly and gradually starting in 2025. I was satisfied with slow reading: I would grab the book in the evenings after a difficult day at work, read a chapter, and feel consoled. I unfortunately cannot comment much on the magical first third of the book, as I have forgotten much of it. I suppose the later chapters would have been slightly more impactful if I had remembered the author’s childhood, his relationship with his parents, and his inner world. I now vaguely realize, however, that Yalom’s autobiography had perhaps influenced and softened my relationship with my own parents over time. I further…