Pretty Fly...

When I was growing up, I wanted to be a Fly Girl. That's right, a hip hop dancin', booty shakin' Fly Girl. For those who are not playing the home game, the Fly Girls were the ladies who danced on the show "In Living Color" back in the early 90s. They were on for the introduction of the show and before each commercial break... and they were awesome. Growing up in the 90s, I so wanted to be one of them. I mean really... how much fun would THAT be!

Then as the 90s wore on, my style changed... I went from hippie chick, to goth queen, to just plain ol' lazy. But that sense of fun and dance never left me. Even though I didn't look "fly" and my friends were into completely different things, I still had that inside of me laying dormant. There was still that little girl inside of me who wanted to be a Fly Girl. But I suppressed that for a number of reasons. Whether it was because of my style, the influences around me or even just the notion that an adult had no business being a Fly Girl, I felt like I had to keep that wish, that want, deep inside of me so that no one else could see it.  

It's funny, though, how the passions from our youth stay with us and creep up every now and then. About 7 years ago, it finally hit me, and I had to say to myself: 

"Self, LET YOUR FREAK FLAG FLY!"  

I let my inner Fly Girl loose and now, thanks to 90s on 9 (on XM Sirius) I can be a Fly Girl in the comfort of my car every evening during rush hour. Sure the people in the cars next to me stare, but I'm having fun, so it doesn't matter what they think.

So I know what you're thinking. What is the point of this? You're not a "Fly Girl." You're not performing on TV? You're not a professional dancer? What is the point?

The point is to let your freak flag fly. It's amazing how we give up the simple things that brought us joy because it wasn't what people thought we were supposed to do. Because I finally let my guard down and started to explore what really made me happy, I became a yoga instructor which allows me to work with some pretty fabulous individuals. Sure, I'm not a Fly Girl in the sense of what I wanted to be when I was 13, but I am doing something that makes me happy.

We walk through this life constantly doing things because we think it's what we are supposed to do, but not necessarily what we WANT to do. Sure, we have obligations and responsibilities, but those should not get in the way of living our best life. Finding a little bit of that happiness, even if it's just for the commute home every day, is so vital to our well being.

So dig down deep and find that child or teenager who wanted to be an astronaut, a singer, or an archeologist and find a way to tap into that innocent curiosity that you once had. I did that and found it in my XM Sirius Radio and my Wii. Thanks to 90s on 9 and Just Dance (C) I can be a Fly Girl anytime I feel the need to tweeze my bangs up super high and do the running man.