_13.jpg)
(Breakfast at Tiffany's - because for me, no other film sums up being lost and not knowing what you want quite so well.)
Lately I've been thinking a lot about purposes and what it means to be special or unique. It's very easy to say that everyone is individual and can't be replaced but in a world the size of ours it's also very easy to feel small and insignificant. The world feels bigger than ever before, now that everyone is constantly connected across continents through the Internet, phones and fast-spreading media; for all the benefits this brings us, it also creates an acute awareness of just how tiny we are as part of the human race at this very moment, let alone in the universe's entire history and future. I've always firmly believed everyone has their own purpose, something that they're born to do, and that because of this everyone is different and irreplaceable in their roles. On days when I'm feeling down, it can be depressing to look at people who are inspirations for this philosophy - people who've followed their dreams and passions, put in hours of work, and as a result have created things that are beautiful and have great significance - because I can fall into the trap of feeling lost in comparison. How do people find their path in life and follow it with such conviction? Does it make you inferior if you don't have that drive, if at times you feel like you don't know what you want? I don't think I'm alone in wondering this. But when you read interviews with those who have succeeded, you don't see the hard work, the doubts, the fears, the moments where they must've believed they could never achieve their goals. You only see the glamour, the end result, and if you think of it in that way the pride and empowerment that underlies the words and actions of those who are following their true passions make the journey it takes to get there seem a lot less hopeless.
This post is inspired by the current issue of i-D, which looks at dreams. I guess being at the age I am and making the choices that I do means that for me right now, being inspired by people who have the self-confidence to believe in themselves even in the face of adversity is incredibly important. One thing I have learnt lately is that no one's life choices are in any way inferior to anyone else's, as long as they are based on genuine passion and feeling. And I greatly admire people who want to be teachers because they want to help educate others who need it, or those who want to be doctors because they have a desire to heal and to help people. But In modern society it's easy to get pressured into making life choices based on money, or security, or on the values that the media pressures us to have. However it seems to me that those who step outside the boundaries of what is 'safe' are the ones you read about in magazines, talking about how they love what they do and how they have no regrets.
For me, the things that always make me feel special are stars and the colour gold (call me unoriginal, haha!). I only became aware of it after watching that first episode of Glee when Rachel talks about her 'gold stars' and I identified with her (not in such an obsessive way, but I got the general idea). As much as she's irritating and has about a billion bad character traits, I do admire her ambition. And this season stars are huge in fashion - just look at D&G's gold star dress and lots of other glittery gold things. Gold lights up winter and makes everything seem a lot more sparkly and magical in general, so wearing it is a bit like a talisman against dreary weather and bad days. So here's some photos for you all to make you feel special too :)
"You might laugh because every time I sign my name I put a gold star after it, but it’s a metaphor, and metaphors are important. My gold stars a metaphor for me being a star.” - Rachel Berry, Glee.
Bottom two photos - amazing earrings I got in a flea market in Berlin, badly proportioned drawing I did which looked better before I scanned it/the blog uploader reduced its size...
heartfelt, genuine, & beautifully written. you're right about only seeing their end result, & not their internal struggles. did you know the movie breakfast at tiffany's was actually based on a book by truman capote? i've loved those gold star dresses, every time i've ever seen them. your flea market earrings are glorious, & that is one very lovely drawing!
ReplyDeleteEvery word you wrote is so true! And beautifully written. :) I get overwhelmed all the time when I look at what others have accomplished. I think, as creative people (not to sound like we're part of a cool cult or anything), we long to be unique, but also to relate with those who are similar. I love when people are honest and open about what drives and inspires them, because I can often relate to that even more than their artwork.
ReplyDeleteI find the Leith Clark quote empowering, because it reminds me that even when I think I've travelled too far into my own mind to make sense to anyone else, others are goin' through the same thing and trying to express the same thing, but in a different way.
P.S. - Beyonce looks amazing in that dress and your drawing is flawless! Seriously, you are very, very talented. :)
very heartfelt. I always like to try and read more about successful people (besides their interviews) because often in their books/bios they talk about failure and the fact they just kept trying, it's very motiviating to see the whole story rather than just reading a quick blurb about their success.
ReplyDeleteReally thoughful post, I hope you write more like it:)
Also the first pic is amazing, I love how the dress is featured on 2 different people (model & celeb) and it looks great on both.
I loved this post. I'm a big writer too so I looove finding other bloggers who love to write. I ALWAYS think about this, I'm the most bipolar girl in the world. I compare myself to the people who make it big, those who don't, those who are stuck where they are and it truly scares me. Life is so tricky, there is no redo button, no undo, no 2nd chances (usually), I wouldn't say it's completely a game of chance but a lot of it is. We work as hard as we can and sometimes opportunities just appear for others and we have to accept that. But I truthfully believe that everyone, every single one of us, have a skill, a gift, a talent we just have to find and fine tune and if you believe in what you have enough, you'll get there. I'm an pessimist on the outside but the biggest optimist on the inside because being a pessimist at heart is the saddest thing to me. We have one life, if we're lucky we get 80-100 years on this earth, DO WHAT YOU WANT TO DO! Live the decisions you've made and never regret a single thing you do. We were lucky enough to be put on this massive and gorgeous world, given opportunities that we're lucky enough to receive, and always remember that there is someone else out there less fortunate than you are, no matter how dire you think your situation is.
ReplyDeleteSorry for that lengthy post. I loved what you wrote and eventually you'll find what drives you, what will make you do whatever it takes to get to the place that will make you happy. I believe it.
xxAnisa
AH, great post, girl. Like you said, this is definitely the kind of thing that, I think, everybody thinks about. I'm definitely a humongous dreamer and I love to spend my days in the clouds - WHICH IS SCARY. Sometimes I think to myself, "maybe I should just be a _______" so a career path is more simplistic. But I've wanted to go into a creative field for my entire life and I'm determined that it WILL happen. If it's happened to x number of people before me, why can't it happen to me? Dreaming is what makes things happen!
ReplyDeleteSuper post, girl! Chin up.
QUIRKYEXPLOSION.blogspot.com