Hello and welcome!
The Man Chronicles is a part educational, part self-indulgent attempt to share many of the insights that I’ve discovered and continue to discover as I grow up. I’m now in my 40s, and happily acknowledge that I’m still discovering what it means to be a man. I do not attempt to hold myself up as an “ideal man”, nor do I pretend that I even know what an ideal man is.
And yet, I’m not ignorant on the subject. As I have set myself on a course toward being a powerful, integral presence making a huge impact on the world, I have learned a lot–both from self-discovery as well as a slew of fantastic teachers. While I do believe that the lessons I’ve learned will have tremendous value to most people (regardless of gender), they may not for you. And that’s OK with me, because part of what I’ve learned about being a man is speaking my truth, when needed, regardless of how it will be received.
And I know that I sure as hell needed these truths when they came to me, so I know that other men, boys–and women–need to hear some of these, too. So many boys and men are lost, looking in various ways for the direction that can often come only from men who have already learned how. And so many women are craving what only comes from men who have learned to step fully into their masculine power and presence.
What you won’t find on this site is a misogynistic view of gender that is often found on other “how to be a man” types of sites. I do not value the masculine more than the feminine, and I do believe that each needs the other. Of course, from my personal experience as a man, I am biased to report on that side of things. I’ll leave the majority of the feminine experience to the fantastic women out there who know it so much better than I.
You also won’t find a homophobic agenda here either. I believe that masculine and feminine exist in each of us, and when I talk about the necessary polarity between them, I believe that can exist in homosexual relationships, too. Of course, because I am straight, I will talk mainly about heterosexual relationships, again leaving other discussions to those who know them better than I.
Mostly, I hope that you find something you need here, and are willing to engage in this essential discussion. Please comment, follow and be inspired to lead your own lives of integrity and power, at increasingly higher levels.
Thank you,
Joel