Funny, the things that drive us. I have found that things meant to deter or derail our progress, are often the things that ironically inspire us. Motivation is an intriguing, seemingly fleeting phenomena. Many people say that inspiration doesn't come often, so to grasp it while it's there. Though at times I feel I agree -- times when I'm blocked by these obstacles -- when it comes down to it, I realize that creativity, that artistic grit, the seeds of our consciousness (or is it unconsciousness?) are always there, just buried, overlooked like the dirt beneath our fingernails. All too often our creativity, our spirituality, our gusto and passion, can be glazed over by the blander but sadly, more forefront realities of our day to day life. Passion isn't something to make time for, it is something to be lived. For the artist, work is hardly but a verb used as a means to a [never]end, ingenuity and imagination seeping from our pores and creating a vibrating aura around us. But how often do we get caught up in our petty 'real-life' drama and forget to let that passion flow freely? We often fall into the trap of comparison -- comparing ourselves to conventional society, to enter the 'real' world, make a lot of money to buy fancy things, get married and have babies when we are 'supposed' to, and die with objects to leave behind. Maybe we will end up that way, but hopefully not with those as empty goals in mind. Maybe we'll live like kings, perhaps like paupers. Maybe we will leave behind houses and cars, or perhaps great stories, comforting recipes, or a trade. Maybe we teach our children to keep up with the Jones's, or perhaps we teach them instead to love one another, to celebrate our differences, that this is what makes us beautiful....as long as we treat each other with love and respect, for we are all alike in one way. We were made equal.Though I am not much for New Years resolutions (because any day of the year we are ripe for change), I'm more of a goal-oriented gal, I challenge us all to reach for the goal to live more freely. To let our imagination out the way we did as children, to not ignore the silly or outlandish requests of our brain or our heart, to embrace our differences, and most importantly, to overuse the golden rule. Because, brothers and sisters, if we do, the whole world will be a more beautiful place.
