Sometimes life presents opportunities that feel like they should have been part of your bigger plan all along, but the truth is you just stumbled into something wonderful. Or, you made whatever you stumbled into worth the time to be there.

The Westminster Christmas Bazaar last December was that for Books By Design, MC. Being ready in time meant a hard deadline for finishing a logo, printing business cards, and an info post card and offered the opportunity to exercise my spiel. My husband helped by being absolutely brilliant talking to people, discussing the books, making connections. (Partnerships between introverts and extroverts are cool that way.) My mom and cousin came for moral support. It was a fun day – and I met new clients!

Our table was visited by a spry fella in a wheel chair, not one bit interested in family histories, but very curious about a potential book project. He followed up with me in late January and we’ve set to work creating a book of his poetry. The pace is slow and steady, giving me the opportunity to absorb this gentle man’s wisdom and perspective.

He is a self described nonconformist, exercising this through subtle acts such as not cutting his hair, wearing mismatched socks, going to socials and dancing in his wheel chair. In poetry he expresses nonconformity through a casual use of punctuation (none mostly) and loose capitalization. Reading him is fun but listening to him read is exciting. He has a strong voice and rhythmic cadence as well as real passion.

He is a founding member of a poetry group 23 years running. I have had the privilege of joining them a time or two and am very humbled to participate. The group is diverse in backgrounds and not surprising, still very active politically, intellectually, spiritually, and creatively. Sitting with folks nearly double my age offers the chance to feel naive again. No phones on the table when we meet, just minds and attention. And a wealth of knowledge and life experience.

Lack of punctuation came up recently as being confusing to a reader and the Poet’s reply was, ‘Well good.’ He gave a boyish smile. He’s told me several times that meeting the expectations of the status quo is not his priority, rather, thinking, investigating, imagining on his own is his interest. If you ask why, he asks why not?

I like being reminded by someone who’s weathered the pains of time that what others think is for them. What I think is for me. That just because the majority, or even the small minority of my circle of people, are for it doesn’t mean I have to be.