Put A Label On It
Making Labels To Keep Calm + Carry On
In the last few weeks, I changed the way I present captions in my videos. Found a new font. Made them (mostly) one line. Short, sweet, and readable on (most) devices.
The font I chose is called Impact Label, a freeware font by Tension Type. It reminds me of how, as a kid, I loved the punch-type embossing label makers. I even got one (complete with a rainbow of colorful refills) “from Santa” one year.
Yes, I was the kinda kid who asked for art and office supplies for every occasion.
As I’ve been adding more captions to my montages, I’ve thought a lot about labels. Once a fun way to decorate and organize your stuff, labels have become, for many, modern-day badges of courage…and shorthand for finding your “tribe.”
In a world full of noise and distractions, labels offer a quick, concise way to make sense of and organize things—whether it's a drawer full of supplies or a complex social issue.
But here's the catch: Labels are just a starting point, not the whole story.
Labels give us a glimpse, a nudge to look closer, to question and explore what lies beneath. If we connect, if we want to. And if we don’t? Move (or scroll) along.
When I’m adding captions to my montages, I’m inviting the viewer to dig deeper, to find the story behind the images onscreen.
Just like the embossed labels from my childhood, captions are, for me at least, a fun and functional way to organize and share information. But they’re intended to enable and encourage connection and curiosity too.
MAKING LABELS AS MEDITATION
Yesterday, frustrated by yet another false copyright claim email from YouTube (working on a blog about this on-going issue), I took a long break and ended up making the “Love Is Love (Label Maker)” designs above.
Not only did making these simple designs help me reclaim my own sense of calm, their message is something I’m proud to wear. I’m usually wearing my heart on my sleeve, but now can wear it on my head and my heart too. It was time well-spent.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Lots of people have lots of opinions about other people’s labels—both for and against.
And while it's natural to have opinions, it’s not okay to be an asshat about them. Or even share those opinions…unless asked.
Don’t like a label? Oh, well. Move (or scroll) along.
Do you, boo, and let others do them.
In my opinion, there’s enough hate and darkness in the world already. And there’s no need to add to it. But there is a need to “counter-program” all that noise.
That’s why I try to focus on things that bring me closer to love and light. “Try” being the operative word—I don’t always succeed.
Whenever I’m tempted to slap a label on something—or someone—I remind myself that it’s just the beginning. Whether it’s a caption in a video or a word that defines a part of who someone is, I always find that the real story only starts to unfold when I take the time to peel back the layers.
Thanks for reading!
Clint
VINTAGE PHOTOS
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Words. Powerful, sacred, fungible, deadly, healing, mysterious. As a sharp little just-teen, I described the process of thought to some folks as we waited outside the dining hall for supper. "Something floats up out of the depths. an image perhaps, I try various words, like keys, into the lock. They stick for a while. The thought stays for a while. Then it dissolves slowly back into nothingness." Like the stuff in a lava lamp. Even fierce definitions grow vague with enough time. Handy things, words. I wonder how you say that in ancient Assyrian?
When I write I often find myself at night, deep in a forest. I hold a lantern and I slowly start exploring the surroundings. May take a while but then I start discovering what's there. One image after another, they appear before me. That's when the "labels" pop up. The words that describe a space and time at each clearing in the forest.