Sunday Night With John: Avant Garde

It’s Thursday and the NBA basketball season has begun which means I should be lying on a couch watching the world’s best basketball players. What would make me ditch my first love of basketball?  Project Runway. I know people call this type of fascination a guilty pleasure, but I feel no guilt at this moment. So, as I sit here with my wife, enjoying one of the few shows we both agree on, I begin to wonder what fascinates people about a fashion show. In the interest of full disclosure, I must admit that I get complements on my suits and bow ties, but that’s because my wife picks out most of my clothes for me. I’m more than good with this arrangement. I prefer it this way.

What I realized tonight, while watching this show, is I’m sucker for watching people live their passion. I’m a big believer in people chasing their dreams, their invisible. This show has that in spades. Every contestant is there hoping to be noticed, to achieve the next rung on the ladder to their personal dream. They have to push themselves for new ideas, they have to take chances, and they have no safety net.  Most of us fail to take those kinds of chances, or, we talk ourselves out of it. While these fashion contestants may fail, there is no doubt that they are living life. With so many of us opting for the sidelines of our dreams, a weekly reminder that it’s fun to chase even a sliver of our passion is always worth it.

The other piece of this show is the creativity that oozes out of these people. How they see a seat belt and envision a dress, or they see a disco ball and create a jumpsuit. Quite frankly, I get super envious of their creative ability. Yet it is inspiring, as I’m reminded that I spend my life seeing people in an inpatient facility and see a person who can participate in their community. I see someone struggling with depression and I can envision them tasting happiness again. And, I can be around those who are hopeless and infuse them with hope again.

Creativity and passion seeps out very differently in people. When we find ourselves envious that we cannot use old books to create a suit or apply paint to a canvas in a way that inspires emotions, we must remember there are those who watch our creativity and passion and wish they had our skills. I have lost count of the people who have stated they wish they had my ability to speak in public while I wish I had their ability to play the guitar. We must allow the passion and creativity of others to cause inspiration, not jealously, and we must use our passion and creativity to spur others into action, not defeat. If we can accomplish that, we can all claim to the best avant garde designers around.