Where Have You Been All of My Life?!
Lately, my world has opened tenfold. In the past month, I have forced myself out of my comfortable, peaceful solitude to reach out to others in our community who are trying to make positive changes. And, to my surprise, what do I discover? Why, a whole bunch of silly, caring, sensitive, compassionate, creative, strange, outdoorsy, comical and conscientious people hell-bent on saving the world. For once, no eye-rolling, just warm embraces and amazingly wonderful energy and sheer encouragement.
It was like I was travling alone in the dark and suddenly, these doors opened and I was surrounded by others like me, like the ugly duckling when she joined other swans. I have never had a feeling of belonging. I was never a jock, never a cheerleader, never popular, never a computer geek - never anything that there was ever a group or a name for. I've worn different masks and suffered through social anxiety only to run back to the lovely peace of being with my animals and outside in nature, feeling free and alive. I have never felt alive in a group of people. And, feeling suddenly alive like this is better than any drug. I feel like a giddy school girl, suddenly discovering the right group of friends. I feel the energy and vibes from amazing people and I feel like maybe there is hope in this dark world afterall ...
Okay, I need to tell a funny story. When I was 13, my mom took my brother and I to Hawaii. At our hotel, we all went down to the pool for a soothing dip. Looking across the cool, blue waters, I saw something flat and round thrashing about, trying to save itself from drowning. I grabbed one of my flipflops and jumped in. While doggy paddling (still my best swimming technique), I could hear my mom hollering behind me, "Heather, what are you doing?" A few moments later (okay, more than a few) I doggy paddled back with one hand while pushing my flipflop along the surface with the other. On my flipflop sat this red bug the size of a computer mouse calmly resting. "That's a giant cockroach!" yelled my mom. I took him over to a nearby bush and let him go. He was a cute little guy. After that, I realized it wasn't only cockroaches that have a bad rap but many other creatures as well - bats, skunks, pigeons, snakes - little misunderstood beings to which I could relate.
It was like I was travling alone in the dark and suddenly, these doors opened and I was surrounded by others like me, like the ugly duckling when she joined other swans. I have never had a feeling of belonging. I was never a jock, never a cheerleader, never popular, never a computer geek - never anything that there was ever a group or a name for. I've worn different masks and suffered through social anxiety only to run back to the lovely peace of being with my animals and outside in nature, feeling free and alive. I have never felt alive in a group of people. And, feeling suddenly alive like this is better than any drug. I feel like a giddy school girl, suddenly discovering the right group of friends. I feel the energy and vibes from amazing people and I feel like maybe there is hope in this dark world afterall ...
Okay, I need to tell a funny story. When I was 13, my mom took my brother and I to Hawaii. At our hotel, we all went down to the pool for a soothing dip. Looking across the cool, blue waters, I saw something flat and round thrashing about, trying to save itself from drowning. I grabbed one of my flipflops and jumped in. While doggy paddling (still my best swimming technique), I could hear my mom hollering behind me, "Heather, what are you doing?" A few moments later (okay, more than a few) I doggy paddled back with one hand while pushing my flipflop along the surface with the other. On my flipflop sat this red bug the size of a computer mouse calmly resting. "That's a giant cockroach!" yelled my mom. I took him over to a nearby bush and let him go. He was a cute little guy. After that, I realized it wasn't only cockroaches that have a bad rap but many other creatures as well - bats, skunks, pigeons, snakes - little misunderstood beings to which I could relate.
posted by Heather | 11:47 PM
1 Comments:
Hey Heather,
You truly are a compassionate person, relating to cockroaches!!
Don't worry--after we are all done dstroying the planet, the cockroaches will inherit it.
Erik
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