ABSTRACT
I am driven to write, driven by those (for example, Hantzis, 1998; Buzard, 2003; Madison, 2006) who fear that the performance of personal narratives comes at the expense of the Other. I write pledging my allegiance to my ongoing process of navel-gazing. My commitment to navel-gazing finds its seduction in the fact that my navel so quickly leads me to the Other. In this recuperative gesture for navel-gazing, I first offer a series of personal narratives that become present for me when I take the time to ponder my center. I then address the question of why I continue staging personal narratives, why I persist in going where my navel leads me when I gaze upon it.
