Tuesday, February 21, 2006

Self Portrait Tuesday ~ The Wild Woman of Toronto


Last "All of Me" Self Portrait Tuesday, I celebrated the sunbeam-y part of me. I thought it only fair to include a nighttime version as well. My sister had this little treasure tucked away in one of her photo albums. Oh, my!

I keep laughing when I look at this photo. I look like I should be in a Wes Craven movie about werewolves, werewolves that haunt the downtown clubs of Toronto and frequent the TTC (our subway). We had the time of our lives when we were clubbing. I've never felt so free. My sister and another close girlfriend of ours (Hi, Gala!) and I were out there all the time. We had our spot for Thursdays, Fridays, Sundays and Mondays. Saturdays were too busy and attracted a crowd we didn't love. Tuesdays never had anything cool happening. And Wednesdays were a bit borderline. Thank goodness every night wasn't great for clubbing because it gave us some time to sleep. Not that we felt like we needed any sleep. Far from it.

Looking at this picture (flattering as it is, lol) I'm reminded how important it is for me to invite some wildness into my life, and I mean great rebellious glorious wildness not something more like the chaos and madness of trouble. I don't know if you're like that but if things get too mild, too bland, too normal, I have been known to get restless and like a little monkey start looking for trouble to liven things up. So instead of trouble, this year I'm inviting in magic to stir this wild heart. I'm open to the amazing and the unexpected. I'll be planting magic seeds all year and am so curious about what will sprout.

And in that spirit, I end once again with my very favourite line from a poem:

"The wind is a woman and she dances."
Lorna Crozier



5 comments:

liz elayne lamoreux said...

oh i love this! remembering to invite the wildness into your life.
and this line of poetry. amazing. now i want to discover the entire poem...thank you for sharing it here...

Claudia said...

That is one scary photo! I know what you mean about letting some wild stuff happen...I worked one season in an Austrian ski resort back in 1990 and I remember it as a big blur..too much drinking, not enough sleep, night after night. The carefree feeling, living each day to the fullest - that was amazing and although these days it´s other activities that awake that feeling, it´s definately not to be underestimated - that feeling of magic happening!

Laini Taylor said...

There were times when I was younger when I courted "wildness" but it took me some time to learn I was doing it for the sake of doing it, not because it was "me". My nature is pretty tame, but I do crave the big fun story to tell now and then. I find my daily life might be productive - lots of writing and art! - but does not make for fascinating narrative!

meghan said...

Hi there!

I love the picture!! I have some of those hidden away too! When I lived in the UK for the first time I went completely crazy and had wild adventures. Sometimes I miss that ability to just let go. But like you, nowadays I am choosing to feel that wildness through delight and magic and being a little monkey sometimes. It's certainly healthier and cheaper!! P.s. I LOVE the quote!

Frankie said...

That's a really great line! I know just what you mean about feeling restless and that need to break out and go a bit "wild." I love the idea of "inviting magic in to stir your wild heart." Another beautiful line. Thanks for this!