The quote itself strikes me as very apropos for this particular post-election season. Much ado has been made of those who have felt or currently feel disenfranchised, separated and singled out or simply ignored. But it has always been those who think, write, speak and act differently who provide us all with a new way to envision the world.
We assume there are not many of these weird people. They fit in a category all their own. Maybe that's true. But as we move forward, we need to encourage their company. The poets, writers, troubadours use their words to bring us hope, to paint a different image of what the world can be. Or they explain to us what is broken and needs to be fixed. They have always been the ones to encourage us through any dark times.
The painters, sculptors, visual artists use their talents and abilities to show us what is, what is not, what could be. We have relied on them to point the way for us in the dark. They give us portals to each other, to the world around us and to ourselves.
When we lose our way so completely that even the words and music, even the visual arts presented to us only scratch the surface, then we rely on the mystics. They draw us into the deepest part of ourselves only to send us soaring out to the edges of the Universe. We find them out in the desert or high on the mountains or in a hermitage in the midst of the busiest cities. Although they baffle and confound us, we are drawn to them. Our connections with them, in whatever small or large way, bring us peace and joy.
We need the misfits in whatever guise they show up. Especially when the mundane worries of our lives grow heavy. What we also need to realize is that we each have the potential to be that misfit, to show up, to shine a light, to bring us closer to ourselves.
Who in your life is a misfit you trust? Which ones are living? Which are friends? How do they help you when you are down? How are you a misfit to others? How do you confound others?
