Much has happened that have caused alot of potential thoughts and links to life links and connections as well.  Let’s jump right in… (this is epitome of showing how my mind wanders and links to so many thins, but always comes back to so many people that make a difference every single day!)

In the car the other day, after the cyclone bomb of a storm, I was driving and grabbing pictures of many unknown images to many but familiar to those in Delaware, and a specific song came on that grabbed my attention, Call it What You Want by Taylor Swift.   I never really fell over crazily Taylor Swift, (even though I really liked Debbie Gibson in high school) – and well it was interesting to see Taylor start out the same way.  Then some interesting things happening on stage when she was presented an award and then playing the bad girl with controversy in her video, Look at What You Made Me Do.  Then I simply thought, good for her.  All this time she was placed in that cookie cut model of the girlish, young artists, with so much to learn, being put upon by artists “in the biz” for so long, weighing and pressing their fame onto her, and her placating alot of attitudes all around her.  Then I realized, with that controversial video causing a clamor, it was GOOD she caused a clamor, because as a woman in a rough, ego-driven business, she was able to cause others to be uncomfortable and have to be in a position she had found herself for so long. 

These are the kinds of things I think about when driving.

As I was driving one of the oddest and saddest things occurred in front of me.  Midflight, a seagull stopped and just fell out of the sky onto the highway, in the left lane, and it just shocked me.  Yes, I was the person that wanted to stop and grab the seagull and put him n the backseat and hope it was the cold weather and he needed a bit of heating up.  No idea, but it still saddened me as individuals tried to miss the seagull in the lane and he seemed done when he hit but of course, hard to tell when traffic is all around you. 

As that broke me out of my Taylor contemplations, I began to reflect on the massive movements occurring changing the faces of business and Hollywood in lieu of revelations of women confronting a former long history of abuse.  I thought of the many comments made in the past in the part of so many men that continue to take advantage of the thoughts that they matter more than the women around them and thought – it is sad one single revelation had to occur to cause so many overdue revelations that were overdue.  I for some reason went back to when the newer version of the movie Ghostbusters movie came out. I remember there being a ton of backlash about this being a lesser ovie trying to reprise the original film.

I remember the original Ghostbusters and LOVED IT. To me, the original is the original.  However, when I watched the newer version, I loved it.  I loved the diverse personalities that took the place of what used to be all male characters, and let me tell you, the story was the same and was just as funny, just in a different version.  Still loved the original and it brought the value of this new version out even more and not taking away anything.  When I looked at comments about this being a lesser movie, I saw alot of negativity that dealt with, and not blatantly outright saying, the women’s role did not compare.  It bothered me because I liked it so darn much BECAUSE of the female roles.  Just saying…

My thoughts wandered through my camera, onto a landscape in Delaware, I never really  had time to appreciate and now had a second chance – thanks to the amazing transformation and influence a country as rich in culture as you could want in Mexico gave me.  That evening, yes, I passed Taco Bell and I HAD TO DO IT.  It had been AT LEAST 14 years since I had frequented the grand opening of Taco Bell in Butler, PA, took advantage of the punch card there for the opening, eating 60 tacos in a week to obtain the coveted Bull Winkle shirt, and yes, I still have the shirt and yes I lived – but never forgot tacos.  Until I went to Mexico – the taco mecca – (little did I know then) – 

These are the kinds of things I think about when driving…

so I thought yes, it was time.  I decided on the dinner pack of like 10 or so tacos and asked for them to all be soft tacos, maybe a little much.  But it had been a long time, so I went for it. I thought I would have food left over, but I found by the end of the night, only three would remain and they would be gone as well.  The biggest difference that cannot be replicated, by far, is the meat and the taste of the meat.  Fresh tasting, smelling, and even texture, there is NOTHING, nor will there ever be, an experience like eating a taco on the street or in a Taqueria in Mexico.  It was somewhat familiar from the opening of that first Taco Bell years ago, but not even close to what could never be repeated.

As I closed the evening heading back after a refreshing day, I found myself realizing many takeaways that mattered today in the middle of so much controversy.  I was excited to see the stance that the Golden Globes was taking, with the Times Up initiative, as well as the choice to wear all black in solidarity.  I thought, it is easy to do this when you are a celebrity but  No – 

This was addressed and I appreciated it at the Golden Globes, the statement that this was an issue that affected every individual, and heads out from stars to those that are stars but not recognized as stars from Hollywood.   I agreed.  I realized the most powerful events I remembered, thanks to my experience in education, have been the moments that some of the most talented young women I had the privilege to teach and have gone on to teach others by their example.  This important moment to emphasize the power and voice women have on the community around them was not lost on me. 

These young women became leaders in their community and world, and braved through so many hardships and hurdles that most would give up.  I am the better person for seeing the REAL Golden Globes being the young ladies that have become women and earned the respect of all around them, and are symbols every day for what respect, determination, and talent will do for their future, and those around them.  No matter the gloom and doom that seems on the horizon when you wake up, I have learned there is ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS a way out for a better day if individuals are motivated to make those changes.  The students I was lucky enough to have, inspired that in me, and still do- and they are the real Goldens that are around the world that make the world shine, every single day.

Stay tuned for the next post reflecting on the outcome of the 75th Golden Globes Awards, that extends beyond stars that seem out of reach or being able to relate to.  🙂