discovering Johnny Weir
was like receiving a winged messenger
who was sent to remind me
not to discard the most important parts of myself
whose value reminded me of my own
who helped me realize
I was not being fierce enough
with my own fabulousness
Special thanks to Nicole Davis, Johnny Weir Facebook fan,
who said most of these words to me in a chat window.
All I did was shape them into the poetry
that was in her heart
to begin with.
Photo (c) 2010 Ryan McGinley for Rodarte.
copyright 2010 / Binky and the Misfit Mimes / Lynn V. Ingogly / all rights reserved
8 comments:
Binky: I love that 1) From our chat, you can see my heart, 2) In my heart, you see poetry, 3) Because of exquisite, amazing strangers (you, Johnny, all of Weirlandia), I'm a better version of me.
I'm completely humbled and ecstatic to have my name and JW's name mentioned EVER in the same sentence. Much, much love and gratitude. xoxox Nicole
That´s beautiful and very true for me as well.
Thanks to Nicole and, of course, to you for writing Nicole´s thoughts and feelings down.
That was really beautiful, and true for me as well.
Thank you for sharing Nicole's beautiful words with us. I'm guessing (quite accurately, I think) that for most of us over on the Facebook page, his Beingness has had a similar effect.
Sometimes, I wonder if he gets it, about the effect he has on those who become his fans, or if it seems to him that we are just enamored of his skating, his intelligence, and is general good looks.
Lynn, you met him.... what do you think?
Thank you all for commenting! At the risk of creating a whole blog post right here, Puma, I would say that no, I don't think he fully realizes what I would call the profoundly spiritual impact he has on many people through both his art and his essence. In my opinion, I think that's partly because (1) he's very hard on himself, (2) he's very focused and driven to accomplish whatever his current goals are, particularly during the competitive season, which lends a sort of tunnel vision, and (3) he's had to put up with so much hate over the years that he's a bit scarred and guarded, and that leaves him not fully aware of the deeper meaning and value I believe he embodies for many people. But I think maybe that will come to him as our lovefest continues and starts to outweigh the years that preceded it. Please know that these impressions are informed by only slightly more than the 30-second photo op previously detailed here, but not everything can or should be blogged (although that's hard for me! cuz I'm pretty much an open book!). I just want you to know that the opinions I offer are trustworthy, although they are, of course, just my opinions. :)
I found a wonderful quote today----->here:
http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/group.php?gid=2205049197&ref=ts
"In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then it bursts into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit."
Isn´t that great?
I wrote somewhere else, that... while feeling down and like not fighting anymore... nothing gets me back up faster than seeing someone being down, feeling down, struggling also to find a purpose again and then seeing that someone kicking and fighting to emerge from that dark place again to shine even more brighter than before.
Johnny has this quality. He allows us to see this side of him, he allows us to cheer him up (even in front of a computer or tv) and he allows us to see him rise again. And my...it is a joy to see him happy and succeed.
You know, life is not about winning and always being on the bright side of life. It`s about failing, making mistakes, making wrong decisions and it is also about falling. The point, as Johnny has said, is getting back up again.
Personally, I can´t stand people who never show any failure, who always think positive and force other people to do so also.Such behaviour turns me off.
I also think, Johnny doesn´t get the impact he has on his fans and this impact is not just "his skating, his intelligence and his general good looks". I agree.
I hope he really continues to have an impact on peoples life by simply being him.
germansoulmate
All I have to say is "sigh", LOVE HIM, you are in my head and heart Binky!
I can look back to just a few short weeks ago when I decided to watch some show on Sundance because there was nothing else on and, heck, I used to like skating so why not?
To think of what I nearly missed puts me on the verge of tears. I had lost so much of myself and had no idea! Suddenly I'm looking around and wondering where my happiness had gone. Where had I gone? I used to laugh, enjoy myself, bedazzle everything I could get my hands on, take risks. Somewhere in the middle of building a career, paying bills, being constantly disappointed with myself and never being good enough I completely lost... me. I've found me again reflected in the blades of a pair of skates on the well-pedicured feet of an amazing man that while I've never met him, I feel as if I've known him my whole life.
Johnny GaGa Weir has swept me from my feet and lifted me from a darkness that I had no idea was suffocating me. There aren't enough words to express my gratitude for him, for this amazing community I've found that has made me instantly feel at home.
I was alone in my own head (vury scary, lemmie tell ya) and now I remember what friends feel like. He has given that to me. He'll never know and like Mimes I don't think he'll ever comprehend the effect he has, but I don't care! Results are all that matter and I think that he would completely understand. Long and short is, my life is better because of him. There aren't enough words...
--Jessica Lane
Post a Comment