#spookylair

[spookylair]

LGBTQIA+ Civil Rights Icons

[spookylair]

🦉🦇☠️🎃🕷🕸🌕👻🐾🐺

Happy Halloween!

[spookylair]

★☆★

Stargirl. 2000. Love, Stargirl. 2007.

Jerry Spinelli. 

(This is pretty spoilery under the cut.)

Nonconformity has a price. “The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.” People are fickle, vicious creatures. You can’t truly know a person, not at once. And maybe not ever, if you don’t truly stop and look at just who is in front of you.

Maybe they’re a square peg in a round hole. Maybe the song they listen to is one you can’t hear. They’re alluring. They’re elusive. They’re ideas, and concepts, and dreams. They’re unattainable and unreachable. Charismatic. Assured. They’re the children of galaxies, deigning to walk among us for a time. And most importantly, they’re never yours to define.

And maybe your struggle to explain them does them a disservice. After all, they’re just like anyone else: fallible. true. human.

“they.” “you.”

In Spinelli’s novel, he warns us of divisive language. He warns us of in-group favoritism. He warns us of price one pays when they step out of the loop. Retribution is fierce and absolute. The meaning is clear: this person is not allowed to be of us. And if you stand with them, you are the enemy.

Leo Borlock does what he believes is honorable. Then, he does what is expected of him. In doing so, he crushes his chances with Stargirl. He crushes the illusion he could be anything but a follower - something that haunts him. But not enough to change, when the chips are down. In the aftermath, there is hope he will learn from this. But. Not. Soon. Enough. That lament weaves through the final pages. Not enough, too late, what’s said is done...

⍟⍟⍟

Stargirl, seen through Leo’s eyes, is ethereal and unearthly. The sequel, told from her perspective, blows this out of the water. Here is a sixteen-year-old with grand ideas and a never-ending stream of observations about the world around her. She makes mistakes, oversteps, misreads. And she learns. She is buoyant, pulling people into her life, intent on sharing as much as she can. She gets discouraged, and petty, and bleak. She is just like anyone else, getting caught up in dreams and emotions and experiences.

Love, Stargirl is a letter to Leo, charting her days and nights. She grieves him and debates moving on. I want her to. I want to tell her, Stargirl, this boy isn’t what you want. He’s got to grow more, and you cannot wait. I can forgive him for the foibles of adolescence - for wanting the best of both worlds, and trying to shoehorn you into that role. I can forgive you for changing for him. Love does that to people. But don’t you understand he failed you utterly and completely? Take that failure, and learn from it. Listen to Betty Lou. Don’t become devastated. Don’t grovel. Don’t look back.

In the end, she chooses to keep the door open, trusting the universe may push them towards each other some day. And perhaps by that point, he’ll be ready. And so will she.

[spookylair]

Moved houses!

[spookylair]

Just handed in my house keys.

[spookylair]

Went to a rally against white supremacy

First rally I’d ever been to. At least two-thousand people were there, and a blue & white helicopter (cop? news?) circled and shined a spotlight the entire time.

There were signs, there were chants, there were little candles.

I enjoyed myself.

[spookylair]

Had a great first day on the job!

[spookylair]

Once you get this you have to name five things you love about yourself. Then send this to ten of your favorite followers ♥♥♥♥

Aww, thank you!!

1) I’m pretty funny

2) I’m intuitive at times

3) Got freckles on my nose

4) I really like how curly my hair is

5) If I put my mind to it, I can write & draw.

Not going to nominate anyone just yet! But thank you!! ♥