April 10th, 2019
My entire life, I’ve been told that I speak too much, that I use too many words and that I talk too fast.
For a lot of my life, I was told to “fix” those things for miscellaneous reasons.
It wasn’t until I learned to like myself that I realized there wasn’t anything to fix; that there are differences between character defects and the unique things that make you who you are.
I don’t want to be a meme. I don’t want to be reduced to a simple sentence on a generic background. I want to be complex; I want to use every tube of paint on the palette and see what speaks to me, and see how that speaks to others. I want to be forever too excited about things, because I think people who are cool and don’t show their passion about what they love are boring. There’s nothing wrong with them, of course; they are who they are, and that itself is beautiful, but they’re not me.
The back of my business card says “Always Love,” which is great, and simple. But how great is love if we don’t use all of our words and images and ideas and thoughts to describe it, if we don’t question it and confirm it and present it as hard and messy and easy and free as it is?
Editing is great for condensation and clarity, but always remember this: editors are not creators. Their job is to essentially dismantle and destroy; to take something apart and make it less until it’s palatable to more. Only creators put something here that wasn’t there before.
So, be a meme if you wish. Be a single letter, even. Be what makes you you. But I’m going to be me. And always, awkwardly, quickly and loudly, I’m gonna use my words.
The Den 