Last Friday, I blogged about how I was re-assessing my messaging out in the social media realm, because it was brought to my attention that I might not always be so clear about what it is that I do for a living. Earlier today, I heard the sad news of Leonard Nimoy’s passing. I immediately thought of the film THE GOOD MOTHER. I’m sure for most fans of Nimoy, this was not the initial memory that came to mind.
You see, I wasn’t raised on Star Trek. I came to it much later, and to be completely honest, I was partial to the later series spinoffs. But I did grow to enjoy some of the original cast in the old episodes, in particular Nimoy and George Takei. I may not have chosen to become a Trekker. It usually rubbed off on me. Typically via the men I was dating or eventually married. I’ve had a history of being attracted to comic book geeks and sci-fi fans, men with visions of tricorders, holodecks and Counselor Deanna Troi above their pillows at night. But despite how cool Nimoy was on the original show — and he absolutely was one of the THE most memorable characters the entire franchise introduced to the world — I was always impressed by Nimoy, the artist and the man. When I would see him give interviews, he was charming and thoughtful. And as a director, I enjoyed his work, in particular one of the most unusual stories I’ve seen played out on the big screen, THE GOOD MOTHER, starring Diane Keaton and for me, the then-unknown Liam Neeson. I was impressed with Nimoy tackling a difficult subject that raised a lot of conversation about children, human bodies and the introduction of sexuality into their awareness. Not everyone gave it high marks, but I did as a viewer even at the still green age of 18.
I remember hearing years later Nimoy talk about his new photography book The Full Body Project focused on spotlighting plus size women through a series of tastefully shot nude images. He explained that it was his attempt to shed light on the beauty of real women who are often told by the marketplace they should spend all of their money trying to be something else. If you haven’t checked out this book, you really should. It’s groundbreaking.
So why do I bring up Nimoy on this sad day for STAR TREK fans? I guess because here was a very successful man who accomplished so much as an artist across a variety of genres, besides acting in TV and film — a director, author, photographer, poet…so many ways he expressed his many facets. Yet today, to many people, they will simply think to themselves, “Oh, that’s too bad. Mr. Spock died.”
All of the beautiful articles and tributes I’ve seen already reminded me that we are so many things and yet very often others only perceive us as flat characters — single sided, maybe two sides at best. But how much more could we really know about each other, if two things happened: we were all willing to see people in a different light than we might be used to… and if we were all willing to share all of our various sides with the world.
When I first wrote a romance novel with erotic scenes, my first thought was… yikes. Some people are going to know I think about sex. Well, I have news for those of you who didn’t already know that. In fact, I do. A LOT. And I feel confident that I’m not the only person. But until I chose to write about it and SHARE those words with others, I had not yet been exposed for the dirty bird I sometimes am.
So I pose to you this question — what sides of you have you kept in the dark from the rest of us? Sure, it could be a big risk to unveil them, but it could also pay off in ways you cannot even imagine. It may open doors professionally or personally. And best of all, it could lead to a greater understanding of you and with certain people you may have a yet-unrevealed connection to. Your decision to be brave and be yourself — ALL of yourself… COMPLETELY — could be just the action needed to make that connection.
Chew on that for a while. And if you get a chance, check out that Nimoy book and movie for a different side of a multi-talented man you may not have been fully introduced to…until now. Have a beautiful weekend. x ~ chris
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