Lucy describes feeling invisible "in the deepest way." What do you think she means? Have you ever felt similarly?

Despite being a well-known writer, Lucy describes feeling invisible "in the deepest way." What do you think she means? Does she ever stop feeling this way? Who in her life makes her feel visible? Have you ever felt similarly?

I don't think Lucy ever felt "good enough." Her father loved her but her mother basically rejected her. How can one feel valued and visible when you're brought up that way? William made her feel valuable in their early years. David seemed to care and value her. Again, William seems to continually reach out to her in this book. Is that valuing her, or using her?

Most definitely, especially as I get older! I think Lucy was insecure from her childhood and this magnified as she divorced and then lost her second husband. I think I’m the end she started to realize that William and her kids did Value her.

For much of her life it seems Lucy wanted to be invisible. She was bullied at school, abused at home and feared being singled out for being different. She never felt she quite "fit in". She grew accustomed to being quiet and non-assertive to the point where she assumed people did not see her and certainly did not see who she really was. It took years for her to even be fully visible to herself.

I agree with Jos, our society doesn't always 'see' people, especially mature people. Lucy never felt that she was good enough to be valued, a very lonely feeling.

I think being invisible in the deepest way means not only invisible to others but also to oneself, as though she had no value. She felt visible to David, perhaps her children, and the lovely librarian in Maine who was thrilled for Lucy to be in the library. I’ve felt invisible many many times. I’ve also discovered that I was often more visible than I thought, that ‘being invisible’ is sometimes a low sense of self-worth.

Lucy was raised in an environment where she didn’t matter and was bullied in school. There was no place where she was valued so it is not surprising that she felt invisible

Lucy was bullied at school. traumatized at home, she never felt safe. If you don't feel safe, the best thing to be is invisible. If you can't be seen, you can't be hurt. Lucy felt invisible in the "deepest way" because she felt invisible to herself. Her sense of self-worth was so low at times that she felt it was best not to be seen. I expect that many people, especially women, have felt this way at some time during their lives.

I think that Lucy felt that others did not notice her and that she moved through life without any validation or any that felt like enough. I think she felt this deeply and it may be in part because she had few friends. I imagine that it is difficult to trust people after growing up in such a dysfunctional and abusive home and that feeling invisible helped her to feel safe as she moved through the world. However, a couple of times, she was very surprised when people recognized her as an author.

I think this is related to the "how well can you know yourself/others" question. I think if one feels that no one really knows them, they feel invisible. I think that's especially true if you don't have close friends or family around. Not only do you feel no one really cares about you, but that no one would notice if you disappeared.

I thought a question about being invisible would be included and I had wondered how I would answer it, since I have often felt invisible (yes, I have actually used this term) at various times of my life. I will just say that I understand her feelings.

Lucy feels invisible due to the ill-treatment she has always received from others. Her parents were abusive and uncaring, as well as William with his continuous indiscretions. I have never felt in such manner but I understand that value in most people come from how they are received and treated by others.