So. I noticed this thing Iâd like to address. (âHello, thing, how would you like to be addressed? Uh, no, no I canât bestow an honorary doctorate, so thatâs probably not going to⌠ab-absolutely not, no, Iâm sorry I canât just⌠well, Iâm not going to address you as Your Grace just because you want⌠no, no, look, this conversation has gotten awfully complicated for a joke that was just for my own amusement, so Iâm gonna call it, alright? Okay. Yes, I heard, you said good day.â)
I took a step back and looked from an outside perspective. Thatâs when I noticed the thing.
The thing is, when I see lovely folks on the inter webs showing pictures of themselves and saying, âLook at me. Iâm doing this! And - â I have a reaction. Itâs predictable and specific. In fact, at the risk of opening up another conversation with the voices in my head, it goes a little something like this:
SOMEONE WHOâS NOT ME: Look at me! Iâm doing this! And -
ME: YEP! YA SURE ARE! FUCK RIGHT OFF NOW, SHOWOFF, THANKS SO MUCH.
Then I grab the Nutella and a smoothie straw.
(I am not PROUD of this reaction. It comes from my fear and insecurity, but not liking a truth doesnât make it not the truth, and not liking how I feel doesnât make me not feel it.)
Currently I am involved in a project that means I am one of the folks prancing around saying, âLook at me! Iâm doing this! And-â Knowing what I know about myself, I am compelled to beg you to let me finish what comes after that âAnd -â It is vitally important. At least to me. Yes. Look at me. I am doing thisâŚ
AND I WANT YOU TO JOIN ME!
I hear your slow blinking from where Iâm sitting. âKim. You want me to take my pants off for Nicaragua?â
No no no no no. Yes. Okay, yes, IF IT WOULD MAKE YOU FEEL GOOD! If you would feel saucy and sexy and âa wee bit naughtyâ and strong and silly and proud and unstoppable then YES! If it wouldnât? Then no. I want you to join me in being who you want to be. I want you to make choices for you, not for what people will say about you. Pants or no pants. Pink hair or conservative bob. Cussing like a sailor or remarkably uncomfortable with the word âbuttâ. If itâs your truth, itâs right.
This thing we are doing, this Wayward Daughters, isnât about exclusivity or an image. We want every single person who would like to be at the table to come sit. We can make room. We will always make room.
The same is true with not having money to buy a shirt. Wayward Daughters isnât about a shirt. Itâs not a club with a secret handshake. The shirts are a way of making change. They are just one way. They donât make you Wayward.
How DO you get Wayward? My offhand suggestions: That challenge you want to try but scares you? Try it. That someone who does something you would never do? Support them anyway. That spark you think youâre not worth? Learn to believe youâre worth it. That smile youâre sure wonât be returned? Give it anyway. That person you want to help but youâre not sure how? Ask them. That ânoâ you keep hearing? Let it roll in one ear and out the other. That love you think wonât be returned if you release it out into the world? Let it fucking fly. SAY YES TO YOUR HEART.
And donât judge the outcome. Any win is a huge win when itâs yours. There is victory in even the attempt at courage.
It is such bullshit that we live in a world where THAT is Wayward and unusual. But itâs awesome we can practice our own way of changing it. Iâd love it if you shared your own ideas. Iâm still learning too.
baratheonpilled
stormborns
turnnoffyourmind
yousharknotpass
pixelskylines
kaledo-art
gummygunk
