This is from my flickr buddy Andy Ihnatko, who continues to astound me. I'm not sure if his entire text gets blogged to my site when I click 'blog this,' so here is his caption for the photo of the older woman with the batons. It inspired me, and I hope it inspires you:
Here's a good opportunity to muse on the subject of the Freak Flag. This woman is flying hers gloriously and proudly...as she should.
(Oh, and she was a really good baton-twirler, too.)
A Freak Flag is a treasured item and comes with a certain responsibility. Whoever gave you yours trusted you not to simply fold it carefully and toss it in a drawer. Nope, a Freak Flag is meant to be flown high and flown hard.
Not everyone is blessed with one. A Freak Flag is a source of joy that's uniquely yours. For some, it's going to conventions dressed up as Boba Fett. Others hang enough Christmas lights on their house every year to trick animals into emerging from hibernation early. Maybe last month you read something in the morning paper and then, pausing only long enough to claim a personal day, you drove 180 miles to get your picture taken with a life-sized butter sculpture of Elvis. It could be something as simple as a pair of green plaid pants that you adore, and which you wear any time you think you can get away with it.
By celebrating your personal joy, you add to the whole of the Universe.
If people are going to laugh...hell, let 'em. You're not doing this to win other people's approval, and laughter is valuable at nearly any cost. Plus, if the sight of your Freak Flag inspires just one bystander to do something he thought of a few years ago but immediately dismissed as silly, then clearly, the gods chose well when they put one in your hands.
I heartily salute this woman. If it's been many years since you left your teens and your swimmer's physique behind and yet you're still twirling batons, then it's clearly not just something you do as an after-school hobby. It's part of who you are, as permanent and documentary as a tattoo. And it's a gesture of great generosity to share that sort of joy with thousands of strangers.
A Freak Flag that's never flown is like a toy that's kept in the package, a song that's unsung, or a great movie that burns up before anyone thinks to transfer it from its original nitrate stock.
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dvsjr Pro User says:
Amen.
Posted 29 hours ago. ( permalink )
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jimery Pro User says:
After chuckling out loud, I had to pass the laptop around the room for all to see. That is certainly a good'n.
Posted 24 hours ago. ( permalink )
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Doctor Noe says:
Andy, it is a joy and a pleasure to be your contact. I hope you are collecting all this shit and putting it in a book. Because it's too good to waste.
Hendrix is mah man!
The G
Posted 2 minutes ago. ( permalink | delete | edit )
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