So,…..whew.
I have to get up early tomorrow, but I’m engrossed in this Sarah Jones interview on MarieTV right now. Yes, it’s on YouTube, so this isn’t a very logical decision, but, really, I’m transfixed. Watching Sarah, the incredible imitator and actress extraordinaire, is reminding me of something I think most creatives and, well, all grownups tend to forget:
we’re ignoring ourselves.
I can already hear some of you criticizing me for saying this, but I understand why. What I’m saying sounds ridiculous or highly naive in the “selfie” age, but there’s a deeper truth we can’t just slap a glittering filter on, and that’s our exhaustion. We’re about run ragged trying to create gifted children, eat only organic foods, and get specialized degrees based on whatever a wildly popular guru says. We’re freaking out about retirement while wondering if war or global warming’s gonna take us all out before we get there. We’re either trying to find love, recover from love gone wrong, or maintain the love we’ve got with an overworked partner who’s rarely home. It’s. Just. Madness.
Still, under all the layers of lunacy are people we forget about: our original selves. You know, the ones that had dreams they actually nurtured before adulthood scared the imagination out of them. I find myself remembering script ideas and new business plans that were, yes, written down, but buried because my daughters had homework, dinner needed to be prepared, and a new client scheduled an introductory call during my (now scrapped) downtime.
But, back to Sarah. She managed to take her ability to mimic people with startling perfection and turn it into a stage career. She simply – and beautifully, I might add – is who she was as a child. Who do you remember being as a child? Are you anything like that person today?
My suggestion to you: reconnect with the kid you might have abandoned, the inner you who dreamed of big things that seemed impossible. Remember when the impossible was attractive? Necessary, even? Let’s get back in touch with those fearless, amazing little warriors we once were. Let’s stop writing “wish lists” and turning them into goals that become actualized, full of the things we’ve always wanted to do. Sure, it’s a process and it may take time, but, as the late Jim Rohn would say, the time is passing anyway.
Let’s stop ignoring our genuine selves and make the days count.
