Hero Worship: A success story
This week I had the pleasure and honor of meeting one of my literary heroes: David Sedaris.
For those of you unfamiliar with him, shame on you. I mean, check him out here. I have been a fan since high school, when I read his memoir masterpiece, Me Talk Pretty One Day. After I finished, clutching my stomach, aching from laughter, I gorged myself on some of his other work: Naked, Barrel Fever, Holidays on Ice. Since then, I’ve also sped through Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim and When You Are Engulfed in Flames.
His stories, both memoir and fiction, are hysterical, insightful and often outlandish. At times you cannot believe he has lived the life he has.
The charming book cover.
David Sedaris’ new book, Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk came out in September. He is touring the country sharing stories of neurotic chipmunks, mourning bears, and high-strung cats. He plays parts of his audio book, with his words read by the incomparable Elaine Stritch. And, he shares excerpts from his daily diary. In person, David Sedaris is just as hilarious as his written word, and legitimately seems to experience life in the way that his stories say. I spent the time watching him do literary stand-up with a permanent smile plastered to my face.
Then he met the common folk. I was so impressed with him: he took the time to speak to everyone who came up to get his autograph. More than just looking at the yellow post-its containing our names (so he can spell the dedication correctly) and asking how we are, he held individual conversations. It took longer to get through the crowd, but it was so worth it. He joked with his fans (he in fact asks for jokes and writes the better ones in his diary); asked about interesting t-shirts or clothing choices; he talked pop culture (to one young guy: “Do you watch Glee?”); and took an interest in everyone. He even recognized the girl in front of me from meeting her at a past tour and gave her his personal e-mail address and asked her to e-mail him for tickets when he returns to BU in the spring. Unbelieveable.
Then it was my turn. He had spilled his coffee and told me he had made “a pig’s breakfast” of things. I told him it was an honor to meet him, that he serves as a huge inspiration for me, and told him two jokes: one from Jim Gaffigan and one from Conan. He was amused by the Gaffigan joke about postcards (and told me it was very true) but truly guffawed at the Conan joke on social media. He referenced it in my dedication, and I think I had a good chance of making the cut of his diary.
I was blown away by his generosity in time, spirit and laughter. His words have always moved and inspired me, but being in his presence has really started to push me back into writing often. Perhaps I shall even return to writing fiction (and of course, more blogging).
Everyone should try to meet their heroes. We all have them: famous and notable, courageous and fabled. But I urge you all to look past your heroes of pop culture (and believe me, I have mine), and to go after the heroes that speak to your soul. They spark your inner flame and drive your passion. These are the figures that you can count on to frame your purpose, your goals and your success.
So go ahead, build your own hero story.
The joke was: "All the social media sites are starting to look alike. One day Twitter, YouTube and Facebook will combine into one huge social media site: YouTwitFace."
Falling Feet First 