I spend a surprising amount of energy absorbing their thoughts, feelings, words and whimsy....yet sometimes I find some sadness in the work. So many potentially brilliant minds feeling that their contributions barely merit, if at all. I am one who feels that way, at times. Yet I beg to differ, so today I take the possible risk of briefly speaking as a conduit. Perhaps the message does not become lost amongst the assumed 'refuse'....
There are countless sources of scrutiny and cogitation out there in the grand internet ether. As we scratch the surface of it, we find ourselves oft astounded by the apparent unceasing streams. Your name blips on the radar every millisecond, it would seem. We can separate our own selves from the constant noise, you cannot entirely, can you?
Perhaps it smacks of some level of profound entitlement, or lack of self-awareness, but we would like to believe our voices matter. We would like to believe we get through...although the stark reality seems to be that although the chorus of numerous chanting one message may be more powerful than the straining vocals of one...it would seem that at some point the choir is too large to be heard. Or perhaps we are not singing in harmony, perhaps we sound deranged and rampageous to you?
Are we made of packs of wild-eyed beasts with ravenous appetites, our guts groaning for another taste of your tender ankle? Are we the pack-wolves lurking in the bushes waiting to trample you? No, we are gentle creatures, made of the same fragile fragments and flesh as you.
We are a garden of immutable orchids, weaving our tendrils about one another, enclosed within the hot, redolent greenhouse you've built around us. We come in many colors, shapes, dimensions and fragrances. The blooms grow greater and stronger because of your consequence. Like any flowers, we adorn ourselves so that perhaps our disclosure will be granted a notice by the passing butterfly.
Ah, but you are a reticent gardener! You know not what to make of your bounty?!
Or perhaps there's no room on the windowsill for more fulsome decoration.
If we could convince you to lean over and see through our lens, the view may be too much to bare. You've woven stories that stripped us naked of our secrets-you made art that exposed our deepest truths, those things we told to no one. Those closed secrets are now open secrets, because of your own candor. You accepted the challenge from which many of us recoiled-you pieced together the heart puzzle. Now, upon sharing it with us, we find ourselves feeling small and feckless-that you had to make sense of it when we could not.
Now you shoulder a grand burden, having revealed your light and melodies, like Apollo, now a symbol of deep revelations. I am sorry....it is a role hocked with terrible and beautiful labor.
Our hope is to offer our deepest gratitude, and not to sound as a gaggle of spoiled children fighting over their beloved bauble. We only wish to stand behind our animus, and lift you up above the occasional ugliness that may be shot in your direction. We will do our best to remain a part of the harmony.
~~Thank you to my Wall-nuts for constantly inspiring!~~
c. Paige 2012
I am bereft of words, as you have once again spoken for me...
ReplyDeleteThank you Paige for being our conduit. We can only imagine how overwhelming it must be to be faced with the volume of emails and tweets from his fans. The one thing I wish we could convey to him is that we are enthusiastic fans yes, but that we respect boundaries. That we wish only the best for him.
ReplyDeleteYes, you once again said it all more eloquently than I ever could have. Thank you for that.
A response like the one above is self-fulfilling: it is infused with precisely the kind of pulchritudinous force that symbolizes the internal beauty of each member of our “Wall-Nuts Nation,” the internal and integral unseen beauty that is often forgotten—by our very own selves. I’ve found that coming together—let’s call it “bonding” because that’s what it is—over a shared interest and respect for Wally De Backer or Gotye or the sounds he produces or whatever and whomever brought you here began as a personal indulgence. I’m a writer. I wanted new inspiration, as usual. I wanted to connect with another artist whose tenacity, reverence for process, and attention to detail spoke to my own. I didn’t care if it was a writer, musician, painter, dancer, or graffiti artist who catalyzed my creativity. I gravitated toward “Gotye” because the music wound around me and pulled me in. I gravitated towards others who felt the same because a feeling like that—of fullness, inspiration, beauty, joy, thoughtfulness—does not come often. It ought to be shared. It ought to be studied, examined, and reapplied to aspects of one’s own life. And then, it ought to be shared again.
ReplyDeleteI’m not here to be one of the giddy-gaggle members, either. I’m here for serious (with a side of sometimes silly) conversation, insight, and sharing of all-good-things with others I would not have met otherwise. We sometimes do not witness our own beauties because we’ve been staring too long in the same dusty mirrors, have grown complacent with the status-quo, and have begun to take ourselves for granted. These new eyes and faces, connected to the multiple, global voices culled from every corner of the Internet, are our new mirrors, offering greater insights and introspections about one another. Are we “Nuts”? Yes—to an extent, and perhaps in name mostly. But we are certainly a network, a supportive one, and one casting its reflective mirrors over a much more intriguing whole comprised of our individual sparks. We our each a light; together, we become that mirror reflecting the light even into the darkest corners.
Oh, Cris, you have also said it so well like Paige! Expressing my thoughts in the written word does not come easily for me, so I sit here grinning and nodding my head like crazy in agreement. My biggest fear is that Wally and HQ will look at the "Wall-nut nation" as a group of crazy obsessed fans, and we are so NOT that. Thank you to you and Paige for helping to get that message out in a coherent manner. This 'nut appreciates you both for that. :-)
ReplyDeleteThat means so much, Denise--to me and to Paige, I'm sure. She and I connected relatively randomly by stumbling upon one another online (here) and we seem to be on the same page about SO many sentiments--we were sure we weren't the only ones. I have nothing but thanks, praise, and major kudos to Paige for getting this blog going and keeping it growing, not to mention allowing and encouraging us all to gather here, on Facebook, and (a bit more wildly, due to the character brevity) on Twitter.
DeleteI hope others will continue to add to the commentary and offer their voices and testament!
All good things, everyone. All good things.
Hey Paige it´s the first post I read and it's beautiful!
ReplyDeleteYou are right we are part of a big and beautiful painting created under the inspiration of a big artist,and the best of all of this is that every one of us gives the painting a special and unique touch transforming it into a massive and wonderful show. Lovely words
I am at a loss for response, albeit to say that I can assure you all that we are not interpreted as mad fans, we have been praised for our insights. Keep up the good work, wall-nuts!
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