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We
are freaks. That being stated,
and a few eyebrows lifted, we should define the word freak. A freak is
someone
who is extremely unusual. We usually think of a freak as someone who is
so
unusual that they excite horror, repulsion or at least curiosity to the
point
that people are willing to pay for the opportunity to see them.
With
this definition, let us look
at some of the other freaks, those in that category that people are
willing to
pay just to see them. The most financially successful freaks are in
sports.
People pay to come to the games and to have them sign an autograph. How
about
performers, we pay to go to the opera, concerts and comedy clubs and
buy their
recordings. Writers are another group of freaks. We buy their books and
pay to
go to movies made from their stories.
There
are lots of freaks we pay
extra for. The best surgeons charge more. We pay, and pay and pay for
politicians. A great chef commands a higher fee than the person who
cooks at
McDonalds.
In
short, most freaks are
exceptional people with positive qualities. Again, we are freaks. In
our case
it is that we look at the world differently that the majority of the
people.
Some of the things that make us freaks include, our being married for
over 35 years,
when we go on a vacation we meet the people, we are healers, we are
teachers
and we find the positive in most situations.
We
just got back from a business
vacation. We went to the Tucson
gem
and mineral show. That is a misnomer. The show was supposed to be about
four
miles of vendors. It must have been over eight.
We
met people from all over the
world. Although the two of us tried to stay together, we often got
separated
because one of us got into a discussion with a vendor, and not about
stones.
They included Native Americans, Survivalists, Peruvians, Afghans, etc..
When
waiting in a line people start conversations with us. We are freaks.
People
make a connection with us in seconds. Often people will walk across a
room and
come up to us to ask a question. It seems that they look at us and make
a
connection.
On
the way out to Tucson,
as we merged onto I40, we passed a truck. As we came next to it there
was a
pop, like the backfire you hear from trucks occasionally. Following
that there
was a loud flapping noise. Once in front of the truck it became obvious
that
the noise emanated from our vehicle. We pulled over immediately.
It
was one of those cool, clear
February days. The temperature had been in the upper twenties and the
wind was
so gusty that, while driving, it kept trying to make us switch lanes.
When we
opened the doors to get out and check to see the source of the noise we
smelled
burning rubber.
It
took only a few seconds to find
the flat tire. One of us got out the jack and tire while the other
started to
loosen the lug nuts. One jacked up the vehicle while the other took off
the
flat tire. We switched jobs as needed and in a short time we were ready
to
proceed. At that time the temperature had been in the upper thirties
and the
wind had eased off. Our hands were cold but we were not chilled.
We
are freaks. That being stated,
and a few eyebrows lifted, we should define the word freak. A freak is
someone
who is extremely unusual. We usually think of a freak as someone who is
so
unusual that they excite horror, repulsion or at least curiosity to the
point
that people are willing to pay for the opportunity to see them.
With
this definition, let us look
at some of the other freaks, those in that category that people are
willing to
pay just to see them. The most financially successful freaks are in
sports.
People pay to come to the games and to have them sign an autograph. How
about
performers, we pay to go to the opera, concerts and comedy clubs and
buy their
recordings. Writers are another group of freaks. We buy their books and
pay to
go to movies made from their stories.
There
are lots of freaks we pay
extra for. The best surgeons charge more. We pay, and pay and pay for
politicians. A great chef commands a higher fee than the person who
cooks at
McDonalds.
In
short, most freaks are
exceptional people with positive qualities. Again, we are freaks. In
our case
it is that we look at the world differently that the majority of the
people.
Some of the things that make us freaks include, our being married for
over 35 years,
when we go on a vacation we meet the people, we are healers, we are
teachers
and we find the positive in most situations.
We
just got back from a business
vacation. We went to the Tucson
gem
and mineral show. That is a misnomer. The show was supposed to be about
four
miles of vendors. It must have been over eight.
We
met people from all over the
world. Although the two of us tried to stay together, we often got
separated
because one of us got into a discussion with a vendor, and not about
stones.
They included Native Americans, Survivalists, Peruvians, Afghans, etc..
When
waiting in a line people start conversations with us. We are freaks.
People
make a connection with us in seconds. Often people will walk across a
room and
come up to us to ask a question. It seems that they look at us and make
a
connection.
On
the way out to Tucson,
as we merged onto I40, we passed a truck. As we came next to it there
was a
pop, like the backfire you hear from trucks occasionally. Following
that there
was a loud flapping noise. Once in front of the truck it became obvious
that
the noise emanated from our vehicle. We pulled over immediately.
It
was one of those cool, clear
February days. The temperature had been in the upper twenties and the
wind was
so gusty that, while driving, it kept trying to make us switch lanes.
When we
opened the doors to get out and check to see the source of the noise we
smelled
burning rubber.
It
took only a few seconds to find
the flat tire. One of us got out the jack and tire while the other
started to
loosen the lug nuts. One jacked up the vehicle while the other took off
the
flat tire. We switched jobs as needed and in a short time we were ready
to
proceed. At that time the temperature had been in the upper thirties
and the
wind had eased off. Our hands were cold but we were not chilled.
We
do not like those mini tires you
get as spares, so we stopped at the first exit with a gas listed on the
road
sign and there was no service facility. We repeated this several times
and then
came to a city, three exits off the freeway defines a city. We went to
the
first gas station and asked where we could get a new tire.
They
directed us to a tire store.
It was open but only dealt in commercial tires, trucks and farm
equipment. The
owner directed us to a tire store that not only had four manufacturers
of our
tire in stock but got our vehicle in and the tires change and balanced
in a few
minutes. a couple of hours from the strange noise and we were back on
our way.
What
makes us freaks is the way the
situation sat in our minds. One could look at the disaster of having a
flat in
the middle of nowhere, needing to replace two tires. Needing to make
multiple
stops to find a place that was open, but not us, we saw it differently.
Two
people had gone out of their ways to help us with no compensation other
than
knowing they had helped. The flat happened within fifty miles of a city
and we
got it repaired before one, the tire store closed at 2:00.
In
all we had met nice people and
even though we were at their advantage, they did not charge us more
that we
would expect to pay at home for the new tires. It was no big deal that
we
bought new tires earlier than we had planned. We had gotten started,
that day,
about two hours earlier that we had planned, so the loss of a hour,
still left
us ahead of schedule. The weather had gotten nice when we needed it. We
felt
good.
The
next day, still trucking across
the country, we were between Amarillo
and Albuquerque.
There was a slight
haze. On the stereo came a familiar song “America
the Beautiful” the amber waves of grain were now stubble with
snow but the
purple mountians were majestic. What makes us freaks is that we saw the
song
and it was part of the experience. The coincidence of that song coming
on just
as we got the first view of the mountains and were in the middle of
wheat
fields was, to us, no coincidence.
Nor
was it a coincidence that we
started to talk with a person who makes drums and mentioned that we use
stones
for healing and they responded “then are you the person sent
to help me?” That
we were there and they needed some of our help is part of the grand
scheme.
That kind of situation happens often. We give freely of our knowledge
and
others help us. It is normal.
What
makes us freaks is that then
we went on a vacation to Central American our guide was the grandson of
a
shaman. Out of the hundreds of guides we ended up with one who is a
healer and
comes from a family of healers. We found it out when he mentioned the
medicinal
qualities of one of the native plants.
Then
he told us the family history
it included talking about how the church had persecuted the local
shaman. His
father was not taught the healing arts, because it had to be kept
secret. He
had learned from his grandfather. It was obvious that he was uneasy
about
letting the first comments out. He wanted the business and many of the
people
who come there are not comfortable with the idea of native healers.
There
are many people who have been
taught that natural healing and healers are “the
devil’s tools.” We are freaks
because we realize that if God created nature and gave us this talent
than it
is God’s healing and God’s work. It seems
ridiculous that anything that is
natural these people say is evil and anything manmade is good. We have
even met
some of the people who consider natural healing as evil who feel that
healing
must be either physically or emotionally painful.
During
our trip we spent over
twelve hours “cooped up” together on the road.
Except of restroom, gas station
and meal breaks we would be on the road from before sunrise to after
sunset. We
would read road signs, talk about anything and everything and at times
just be
quiet. Best of all we were together and even more important together
alone.
There were no telephone calls asking for money or trying to sell us
something,
no television and no computer. On any driving trip, these time when we
are
together alone are some of our best times. That makes us freaks.
Dave
had his back go out and it
kept him from work for weeks. Chris had a pain in her foot that made it
almost
impossible to walk. We see these as incidents that helped us get more
involved
with healing. Were they painful at the time? Yes. The pain we remember
only to
help us relate to other people’s pain. Did we suffer? No. We
learned from the experiences.
That makes us freaks.
We
are all freaks. It can be those
things that are our best or our worst that we excel in. Each of us
chooses what
we want to be known for. Few of us will make millions of dollars from
our
talents. Many of those who do make the millions are poor in happiness.
We
know people who are financially
rich and happy. Most of these do not flaunt their money. One of these
was
involved with a group that was bringing a person into town who was
known for
collecting surplus clothing and food and then distributing it to people
in
need. This group had sponsored this women coming into Detroit
and setup times with some inner city churches to distribute the goods.
At the
last minute there was no truck available to bring the goods here. Our
friend
sent his truck and crew half way across the county to pick up the good.
Only a
few of us know what he had done or the expense he went to. What a freak.
Like
Shakespeare, Rodgers and Hammerstein or Babe
Ruth, be a freak. Be a freak like Mother Therese or Dr. Schweitzer.
Like Jane
Jones or Sam Smith be a freak. Find yourself, the best of who you
really are.
Remember, you can not fake sincerity. Be the best you that you can be,
even if
or especially if that is like no other person. Being different, being a
freak
is good
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