Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Human foibles…we all have them…to some extent. The dictionary describes foibles as minor weaknesses or eccentricities in one’s character. To me, they they’re what makes each of us unique. Kind of like our own personal behavior fingerprint, if you will.

Some may view foibles as bad things. And to be sure, I’m sure some are: lying, cheating and hurting others. But many more clearly, or even not so clearly, define who a person is at their most elemental level.

For example, take Elton John during his Captain Fantastic phase when he began wearing a colorful collection of eccentric costumes that would have made even Liberace take a second glance. Did that make Elton John a bad person? No. One that didn’t quite fit in with the norms of society? To be sure!

I vividly recall viewing with wonderment the cover of Elton John’s album where he, completely immersed in his Captain Fantastic persona, sat atop a gorgeous piano, riding it as if it were a magnificent steed. To me I didn’t see a weirdo or someone who was out of control, as many conjectured. Instead, what I viewed was a person so in touch with who he was that he didn’t give a darn what the rest of the world thought and felt free enough to act upon his highly creative inner self.

To me, that image of Elton John became an icon. When I viewed his flamboyant costumes and oversized outrageous glasses, I stood in awe at someone so willing to embrace his inner self, not conform to society’s mandates for “appropriate” behavior. Even at my young age, I recognized that what the rest of the world viewed as minor weaknesses or eccentricities in Elton John’s character were actually precursors to his brilliant work yet to come as he revved his creative engines in full view of the world.

Every day, we come in contact with those who don’t fit into the “accepted” molds that society has set as the standard. Some wear an excess of make up. Others opt to artistically cover their bodies in a never-ending blanket of tattoos. Some are into piercing as many parts of their bodies as possible. While others cloak themselves in a second skin of leather. Does this make them bad people? No more so than any others.

When I come across individuals who cause me to take a second and even third glance, I smile at their self-assuredness. Their willingness to express who they are instead of squeezing themselves into a mold of someone they’re not just to make others feel more comfortable.