In a World of Donalds, Be a Dolly

[Big exhale] Well. We lost couple good ones this week, didn’t we? There’s a well-deserved flood of tributes to Dolly and Tim Curry, two creative forces that played such an impactful role in many of our childhoods.

And if you’re like me…

You’ve laughed along to Muppet Treasure Island and Home Alone 2 with your kids. (And thought about when it would be appropriate to introduce them to the timeless genius that is Rocky Horror Picture Show).

You’ve lost yourself in the reverie of Wildflowers, a song that came out when I was 3, but didn’t truly, deeply connect to until becoming a Mama 29 years later. It’s now a forever-anthem for my girls.

Just a wild mountain rose
Needing freedom to grow
So I ran fearing not where I'd go
When a flower grows wild
It can always survive
Wildflowers don't care where they grow

And the flowers I knew
In the fields where I grew
Were content to be lost in the crowd
They were common and close
I had no room for growth
And I wanted so much to branch out

So I uprooted myself from my home ground and left
Took my dreams and I took to the road
When a flower grows wild
It can always survive
Wildflowers don't care where they grow

And, if you’re like me, who believes we all have a powerful mission greater than the art we create, you draw great inspiration from humans like Dolly and Tim, who have used their platforms and their pocketbooks to champion countless efforts that benefit others. From children’s literacy, to AIDS & vaccine research, to natural disaster relief, to LGBTQ+ and BLM advocacy, my goodness, those two filled their 80 years on this Earth by blazing their own paths and taking others along for the ride.

What can you do in this short but magical lifetime to leave your community a little better?

How can you use your creative voice to make a difference, even in the bleakest of times?

Who can you inspire - just by boldly, unapologetically being you?

Shine brightly, today and always.