I’m going to be honest. Gen Z-ers would call me old. And, ok, fine. It’s partly true. If you were to break down which millennials fit where, I’d be in the “you would star in the Cocoon movie for our group” subset (see Figure 1, and yes, I know, this reference just proves I probably am #old).
All of that to say, I might not be the youngest, coolest cat in town (because young cool cats don’t say things like “young cool cat”), but I do deeply appreciate BTS. I just like great music and great people. Great people who like dogs. And, here’s the thing: none of this stuff about me really matters that much. Because this site, while it will include things from me, isn’t just about me. It’s about we. And what we can do together to prop each other up and bring humor, creativity, and maybe in some cases, positive change to the world around us.
I’m going to be honest. Again. I don’t know all there is to know about the wide and wonderful world of ARMY community and activism. I know it’s far-reaching and has moved mountains for the better. I love that. It’s a large percentage of the reason I’m sitting here typing this right now. For the most part though, I’m not aware of all the things places like US BTS ARMY could tell you. They’re the professionals – I’ll leave it to them and others like them to keep everyone on the straight and narrow.
What I can say is that in the last few years, I have learned what many others already knew: BTS fans make up a brilliant, thoughtful, caring, powerful community. There’s limitless intelligence and creativity and talent and heart. Purple hearts. And it turns out that purple hearts bleed kindness.
I would never presume to be an original. Or the most knowledgeable fan. Or a co-opter of an honest and sincere movement. But the wonderful thing about movement is that it creates space – space for everyone to find where they fit in. And that’s really what this site is all about: holding space for one another as we amplify the power that exists among us.
It started off as a text between two friends (who met at a BTS concert). One kindly indulging the other (me) as she spit-balled entertainment pitches for the band. It was all in jest. Mostly. But then the spit-ball turned into a snowball (is that gross?) that grew and grew as it rolled around in my head. My imagination took over.
What if….?
What if I really did create a space where people could come to read or share a novel pitch to the stars? Or maybe for a laugh? Or maybe for no reason at all.
What if it turned into a community that fosters ingenuity and inspires thought – big or small?
What if….
Don’t all good things start with that question, though? Because truly, what is this life if we don’t explore the possibilities of it? And, as my dad says, “You can dream anything…because it’s free.”
So let’s dream. Create. Think. Laugh. Share. Act.
Ready, set, go.