Miss&Fit

Yesterday I got a message on Twitter. No matter that it must have been generic and not composed with me in mind, something in me stirred. I think it was my misfit bone singing.

It brought to mind the TED talk that I saw a while ago (thanks to the fellow misfit Charlotte at Zouxzoux who got bookjacked) and loved it considerably, even though I’m not a regular customer of such talks.

I forgot the details but not the goosebumps. And I’ll always remember the passionate woman in a flowery dress speaking out of her Doc Martens about her reluctance at becoming a writer.

I’ve just watched it again and I think you should too. Lidia Yuknavitch on one of her beauties:

“Fellow misfits, I can almost see your heads glowing,” she says and she is right.

Her book “The Chronology of Water” instantly went to my to-read list (I haven’t got hold of it yet) and I found her on Twitter. And now she is in my message box.

Hi Manja! The Misfit’s Manifesto TED book drops October 24. Wanna play. On OCTOBER 24, post YOUR misfit story on social media. drown out Trump tweets and other anti woman anti people of color anti planet trolls. #MisfitsManifesto

No matter how RARELY I do what I’m told, this is one of those moments. It takes a misfit to make me move.

As for my misfit story – providing one would make me a writer, wouldn’t it. I guess I’m going to hold onto my reluctance for a while longer. But my head is glowing and this – blogging – is how I connect with fellow misfits and how we share our stories and experiences, now that we can. In the past I guess we’d have to tell it with a book.

These photos of a scene encountered a few days ago remind me of the moment when my coat of “normalcy” was shed and I embraced my misfitness. I went straight from mom’s red silky blouses to dad’s long coat, jeans jacket and cowboy boots. And boy, did that felt good.

As good as it feels to love, read, see, feel your stories too.

Photo: © signature mmm