Rabbits Vs. Squirrels. What is the new definition of strength?

Perhaps the new, burgeoning socially-agreeable, definition of strength is related to vulnerability and emotional exposure — being able to show weakness or truth (1) willfully (2) with or without overt fear of public judgment and humiliation, and (3) through authentic self-talk that allows #1 and #2 to be mentally accessible specifically in the male space.

As I write this list, I feel a sense of irony, I must admit. Collectively, women tend to enjoy a layer of “ease of access” to vulnerable emotive expression — so much so that society predicts that all women possess the capacity to be sensitive. Maybe I can even say that women enjoy ease of access to sensitivity and men enjoy ease of access to anger.

Many women in my network are vocal about the emotional inaccessibility in their partners. We can only wonder if it’s actual emotional inaccessibility they are experiencing or if their partner, in fact, fears being seen as emotional and chooses to repress and not address.

Vulnerability among men, specifically among men to other men, and especially among minority men to minority men, feels like a new territory — a new social moment and yes — a new opportunity to revisit and substantiate the definition of strength.