The independent individual has always been imaginary

The future of independence is interdependence

Angie Dixon writes from a single room engineered around her body — adjustable bed, trapeze bar, grabbers, a grip on her keyboard — and argues that this is not dependence but a functioning life. Our culture defines independence as doing everything alone, a standard almost no one meets; the difference is only whose assistance stays visible. Independence means having enough support to direct your own life.