My pick for today’s challenge isn’t something someone told me once, a while back. I probably could have thought of a couple of examples, but this one has stuck with me along the years, so I guess it is better fitting.

You’re crazy.

If I had gotten a dollar everytime I was told this, well… I wouldn’t exactly be rich, but I would be wealthier, that’s for sure.

The three words can be delivered on different tones. And like many people would have, when I started thinking about this post, the first mentions I thought about were times when these words have been thrown at me with anger and rage.

But I don’t want to talk about the negative times. Because these people don’t deserve the attention, and I certainly don’t need to revisit these painful memories.

I prefer to think about the (countless) times I was told ”You’re crazy!” because I dared doing things others didn’t have the guts to do. These times, the words weren’t an accusation, but more an expression of envy.

I never understood why people stopped themselves from doing things just because of shyness, or to avoid other people’s judgement. I take that back, I do understand. I am terribly shy myself, but I guess I am just too curious to care.

For an example, in the early 2000s, I used to be a dispatcher for the ambulance service of my area. We had paramedics in many cities, and we covered quite a large territory. Pretty much all the contacts we had with the paramedics were over the phone or the radio. Some of them we really liked, and others we hated working with. But there was a general feeling of curiosity about these voices we talked to on a daily basis.

So, I decided to start driving around at night, to meet some of the teams that were on duty. It was easy to find ambulances, since we knew all the spots where they were stationned to wait for the next call.

I would stop in a Tim Horton’s (very popular coffeshop chain, here in Canada), pick up coffees and a couple of doughnuts, and I’d give a call to the dispatch to know which team was free for a visit.

I had a pollaroid camera in my car during these raids, and when I’d find an ambulance, I knocked gently at its door, and engaged in a conversation with the paramedics. The late night treats usually bought me the right to take a picture of the gentlemen (there were very few women back then).

Picture that I would take back to the dispatch central, as a trophee. And after a while, the girls started giving me ”orders”, wanting to see this or that guy in particular. And everytime I went on a hunt, the three words were sure to come out.

You’re crazy!

Along the years, I learnt to embrace what others called craziness. Now, when I embark some daring plan, and people tell me ”you’re crazy” I smile to myself, thinking…

Yup! I am… And you’re jealous because you are not!

What about you? Did someone ever tell you something about yourself, that you never forgot?

You can read Marquessa’s thoughts about this theme here.