When my Dad thought someone was strong, sassy, confusing, a pain in the ass, or just simply willful as all get out, he'd say, :Woowee - they're something else."
Which would often elicit my response: "Something WHAT?"
And then he'd say, "Oh, you know."
"Huh". Then I'd sit in silence for a while, and thank my stars I wasn't "something else".
Looking back on it now, after a lot of soul searching, after losing my Dad, my Mom, various livelihoods, dealing with health setbacks - in essence, living a life, I'm leaning toward a different perspective on "something else". Rather than someone who is a big bag of irritating personality traits, I'm more keen on thinking that someone who is something else is quite the tower of uncompromising strength, verve, and inner power.
Which made me think of Serena from "Bewitched". Now, that girl was certainly something else: self-possessed, quirky, strong - and not just a little bit groovy She seamlessly swept between continents, eras, and worlds. She popped up at often inconvenient times. She pulled many an irritating stunt - but so often her spells, her shenanigans, came from a place of contempt for complying with the mediocre, the commonplace, the "usual". She shook things up. She unabashedly flirted with Darrin's boss, wore micro mini skirts at inappropriate times, read her niece stories which caused all kinds of tomfoolery. In short, she carved her very own world, caring squat for what others thought. But, at the same time, she had at her core, a deep caring for her cousin Samantha, which she most certainly did not wear on her Pucci-designed sleeve, but kept quiet inside, only peeping out when absolutely needed.
So, after some reflection, I'm looking to be "something else", too. To stand for what I feel is right, even if the standard conceptions veer from it. To make intentions clear, to take bold steps.
If you're at the precipice of taking some big leaps professionally, as I am, may you fully embrace that something else inside. For it acts like strong wings, carrying you between the mundane and the brilliant, past the Cosmos Cotillion, and riding along side Serena, dressed in a catsuit, astride her motorcycle, ready to take on the stars ...
