There were once two cats of Kilkenny,
Each thought there was one cat too many;
So they fought and the fit,
And they scratched and they bit,
Till, excepting their nails,
And the tips of their tails,
Instead of two cats, there weren't any.

-Anonymous

I ran across this poem the other day and it struck a chord. It tells a story of opposing forces so consumed by their differences - by their contradictions - that they end up destroying themselves.

It's so easy to let contradiction become combat instead of conversation.

Hi, I'm Rachel. Like you, I'm a composite waveform, full of contradiction.

I am often loquacious but always listening deeply. I am a generalist with a penchant for weeds. I am both a particle and a wave.

My dominant frequencies are perhaps best described as electrical engineer, architectural designer, and philosopher. I am infinitely curious about the intersections between neurology, psychology, sociology, biology, physics, history, storytelling, and technology.

I will never grow out of my "why?" phase. I am a daughter, wife, parent, friend, colleague. I am consumed by a persistent desire to turn meaning into matter and I intend to use my time to design systems and spaces where others feel enabled to do the same.

And I will always have time for a conversation with contradiction.