Looking back, I was most myself in my mid-teens.

The walls of my bedroom were a dark chocolate brown, and sheer, flowy curtains hung from my windows. At any moment, the room was filled with a combination of incense and candles, which were stacked all over the furniture and floor. Books and notebooks and pens were everywhere.

I was thinking about joining The Peace Corps or Greenpeace. I made my own purses out of scrap fabric late one night sitting in my bedroom floor (and it promptly fell apart the next day). I was known for my “John Lennon” glasses. My progressive views got me called a “Hindu” by a conservative family member.

As time went on, I fell into the minimal, beige trend of many women my age. I now know that was largely because my as-yet undiagnosed ADHD benefitted from the lack of clutter and color.