Who's Your Muse?

Well, that first begs the question, "What exactly are muses?"  I mean, are they even perceptible to the human eye?

Mine is.  But before I get to that, a bit of background on muses.

According to the musical "Xanadu", muses all dance like they should be company members of the Joeffrey, sing ELO songs, and are surrounded by neon auras.  Now, that's really something, if you think about it. 

But the muses of ancient Greece didn't rely on such theatrics.  They were, quite simply, pretty dang powerful, talented women.

From Wikipedia:  The Muses, the personification of knowledge and the arts, especially literature, dance and music, are the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne (memory personified). Hesiod's account and description of the Muses was the one generally followed by the writers of antiquity. It was not until Roman times that the following functions were assigned to them, and even then there was some variation in both their names and their attributes: Calliope -epic poetry; Clio -history; Euterpe -flutes and lyric poetry; Thalia -comedy and pastoral poetry; Melpomene -tragedy; Terpsichore -dance; Erato -love poetry; Polyhymnia -sacred poetry; Urania -astronomy.

Muses inspire.  Sometimes muses shake things up a bit, perhaps clearing the creative cobwebs, so an artist can dare to explore and dream.

What got me focused on muses today?  Because I've been reading "Then Again", Diane Keaton's memoir.  And it hit me, pretty full-throttle, that she's been a long-time muse of mine.  Now, that's not to be confused with a guardian angel or spirit guide; I know mine quite well and sense they're always encouraging me to grow artistically.  And they DO inspire, but in ways that are not always perceptible.

Diane Keaton's been perceptible.  Yep, she's been a force, without her ever meeting me, without us so much as occupying the same space, for inspiring and igniting my creativity all across the board.  Following the functions above, I attest that Ms. Keaton's been my comedy muse ever since she said "La-Di-Da" over 35 years ago in "Annie Hall".  But there's been so much more to our association.

For instance, she inspires me with her work for animal rights. 

Her film and photography work fires me up to create in media that I might not otherwise have explored (like my book on vintage amusement parks, "The Cotton Candy Road Trip").   

And then there's the clothes...

Diane mixes the old with the new, the classic with the experimental.  I mix vintage with newer clothes all the time.  Odd?  Nope - just "Diane".  And hence, "Pam".

And oddness, quirkiness; there's that, too.  The stuff of which I'm made, that never, ever feels odd or quirky to me at all unless I attempt to play by the "rules".  Went through many a year trying to fit in and be status quo.  Well, that was a disaster - and the best learning experience I've ever had.  A blessing.

And another thing.  While reading her memoir, I am inspired to mention (again) just how nifty my mom was, how much she gifted me with, and how much I miss her.  And, like Diane has done for her mother in "Then Again", I would like to take the time to wish my mom had a better self-image, more self-esteem, because with her quick, clever mind, she could've made an even bigger impact in the world, if she'd have given herself a chance.

Diane Keaton has always been who I want to be when I grow up.  Which is awesome, because I feel she's someone who has no desire to ever completely do so.  Once, a life coach of mine gave me an excerise to determine who my Future Self would be: the older, wiser Pam.  I was led through a visioning experience and I met this person who I named Dakota, because she lived near the mountains.  And she looked pretty much like the photo to your left.

So, I officially dub Ms. Diane Keaton my Life Muse.  She'd probably scrunch her nose up at it and not want all the attention, wondering what all the fuss was about.  But Diane, I just have to tell you... it's all been good.  It's been freeing.  And I thank you from the bottom of my size 8 spectator shoes from the 40s (actual photo of my shoes!!) which make me take giant, risky, quirky, full-out steps.