Hello Daydream Believers!
Sometimes life is stranger than fiction.
When I was in high school, our intrepid 9th-grade English teacher, Ms. Bigelow, tried to introduce us to Walter Mitty. Walter is a character in the James Thurber short story The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. The story was first published in 19391, and by 1990 when we were reading it, much of the story had become quite dated—or so we thought.
Walter Mitty is an incurable daydreamer. His fantasies are all-encompassing and interfere with his real life.
Our classroom of high school freshmen was not connecting with Walter until someone said that Walter Mitty was just like Calvin from Calvin & Hobbes.
Then we all got it—except Ms. Bigelow, who was not familiar with the greatest comic strip of all time.
Once we started bringing her strips of Calvin imagining himself as Spaceman Spiff and many of his other imaginary adventures, she loved it. Ms. Bigelow started teaching The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by showing Calvin & Hobbes comics on her overhead projector after that.
I once had a very serious job.
at the kitchen sink
dreaming surreal poetry
dreading life of toil
I was a lawyer.
I was good at my job, but it was not good for me. It was killing me—not metaphorically. The stress was causing a lot of serious health problems. So I abruptly quit.
I spent the next ten years as a freelance copywriter, something I was also good at but that I did not especially love. However, it was a lot less stressful, and it gave me time to try new things.
It has taken me almost twenty years to learn that just because you are good at something doesn't mean that you should do it.
In my heart, I’m too much like Walter Mitty and Calvin. I need the space to dream with my eyes open.
Be the weird you want to see in the world!
Cheers,
Jason
P.S. 20 days until Wild Divinity is available for purchase!
The story was made into a fun movie in 1947 starring the irrepressible Danny Kaye and a not-as-charming movie in 2013 starring the supremely talented Ben Stiller.
Love the haiku and your post too. English teachers are the best
I too am an ex lawyer though I was probably pretty shit at it. Still trying to figure out what I like/want to do but I do enjoy your candour and your illustrated haiku!