Just put it out there!
Got back from a 3 hr road trip, where I was flipping thru radio stations the whole time. Maybe I’m old school – I like getting surprised by songs that DJs pick, vs always having my own list of go-to favorites lined-up.
Midway thru the trip, the “one-hit-wonder” Tubthumping, by Chumbawumba, came on. Every time I hear that song, memories of my freshman year of college – 1997, in our run-down dorms, pass thru my head, bc 1) a guy on our floor, Kyle, played it on repeat, 2) the beat was so catchy it’s just stayed w me all these yrs.
It got me to thinking – there are all these bands that put out “one hit wonders.” Like the ones pictured here: who hasn’t found themselves singing along to Come On Eileen? There are all these child actors who’ve been in shows & typecast & never been part of a big hit again. There are artists who’ve painted that one piece of work that’s revered & wasn’t discovered until they passed. There are poets who hit the jackpot on a poem that just hit the perfect essence, once, & never found it again.
Is/was it a failure that in all the examples above, “they” never seemed to capture “it” again?
I brought up Tubthumping bc in the way that song made me think abt college, I answered my own questions. If you create ANYTHING that inspires ANYONE, whether it’s a one time thing, or you keep hitting the nail on the head, what a gift you’re giving the world, by helping ppl to relate to something in such a profound way.
I’m a big fan of my friend from HS @abbeydrucker‘s photography. She’s crushing it now. And I remember back in HS when she was first putting her stuff on the school walls – & some ppl would love a piece, some would love many, & the beauty of creation is, we don’t ever know how many we’re gonna touch – w our writing/acting/singing/poetry/photography – essentially our forms of expression.
If part of being mentally healthy is opening up & letting things out, here’s a challenge: Just Put It Out There. Friend/fam/neighbor – very publicly, or just to one person, share what you have in your head. You don’t know who you’ll inspire.
