6 x 6 Squares

A community mosaic, consisting of 6 x 6 canvas squares, was arranged by a local art center.  Several hundred canvases were the source of personal inspiration.  I saw a string of eleven of them in a row and it struck me how unique each one was.  There were oil paints, cut glass, photos, pencils, paper, and other media used.  Combined by individuals they are each so beautifully unique.  I love how with all of these being by different people, that they are so unique.  It is a reflection of their creators that they are also so unique.   Just little squares of canvas become little captures of people’s hearts. 

Celebrating Weird

   I can confess without discomfort that I am a bit odd to most way of thinking. I’m fine with that because it’s who I am. I am eagerly reading about how the Middle Ages were formed according to our modern since of history; Tolkien’s iambic pentameter is something that strikes my ear as great beauty, I nearly always have a camera with me and take around 3 to 300 pictures a day. There are enough pre-conceptions out there that this has not always been something that was comfortable. High school yearbooks have the words “so sweet” in them so much that I remember wiggling up my nose at the words. Sweet? Really – that seemed like such a cotton candy, melted and non-consequential word. But, truth be told I really wanted to be able to feel like I fit.

   It wasn’t until later that I started feeling more comfortable in my skin. History, love it! That’s okay, that’s just me. Yes, I will sing in the store and may have odd bits of songs running through my head at whatever you said. I get absolutely thrilled when I can master a difficult piece of software or understand statistical analysis. That just makes my day!
   We are all made uniquely, different from each other. We probably all hear someone tell us when we are younger that if the entire world were alike it would be a terribly boring place. Well, yes that is probably true. However, we continue to seek out and match up our similarities. Let’s celebrate our unique propensities.

It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, and It’s not superman?

Remember the old Superman movies, the Batman television show with the giant cartoon words scrawled across the screen, and the other myriad of comic book characters? Each of the characters, even with their moments of declaring that they just want to be normal, would not give up their very unique ability. And that is the key isn’t it? Unique! We all want to be something different, something super or unique, something that no one else is.

At the same time, and you have to love humanity for its dichotomy with this one, at the same time we crave and strive to be unique we also seek normalcy and blending in. We want to look like, sound like, and fit in (or at least feel like it). I just love how strange we are, such a jumble and wonderful puzzle.
Do I want to be unique? Sure I do. I loved the Bewitched show growing up, just wanting to wiggle my nose and have things clean up or move or be able to travel with a wave and a twitch. But it’s really much deeper than that, I want to be me, the me I was meant to be. I think that God must have realized that we would seek our unique and normal turns. That must be why we find people who we can relate to, to be friends with. That must be why we seek out people we can understand and understand us, or at least want to. On the other hand, it’s important to acknowledge that God did make us distinctive. Note that the life I have, the plans that God has for me are not the plans and life God has for you. He wants you to have something wonderful and specific for you!
We don’t really need to be Superman or Wonder Woman. Thank goodness! All those crazy schedules would kill my sleep patterns. But, to God I hope you find that you are already that unique and wonderful.