I believe everyone has a passion in life. Whether or not they discover it – or pursue it – is a different story.  What an amazing creation it is when a person finds what truly makes them come alive.  Even more, how lucky we are when they let us in to see it.

To me, there is almost nothing more beautiful than getting to see someone in their element.  It’s as if they transform into someone completely different than the person you’re used to talking with over coffee.  There’s a visible change in their body and their eyes – an excitement that is so overpowering it can’t be contained.  It’s contagious if you’re open to it.

Witnessing this is always such an inspiring experience for me.  Especially when I get to see it from a new friend for the first time.  It’s like meeting a brand new person and getting to see a side of them you never have before.  This has happened a few times for me since moving to New York – make friends with someone, find out they’re a fellow artist, get to see them do their work, become inspired all over again.  It almost leaves me speechless as I’m typing, searching for the right way to put this into words for anyone who decides they’d like to read a blog post today.  Then I realize that this is one of the reasons we all went into the arts in the first place; we aren’t as good at conveying a message with words as we are with our art.

I’m sure we all know someone who is passionate about something.  Perhaps it’s an art form – dance, photography, music, etc.  Or perhaps it’s science or teaching or even fighting for a cause.  Whatever it is, I recommend seeking that person out and trying to actually watch them do what they love.  Talk to them about it.  See what it is that is so powerful for them that it completely ignites them from the inside out.  Most of the time they will be more than happy to share this special information with you.  You’ll start to see a completely different side of that person; you’ll be inspired and maybe even a little emotional.  Let that happen.  Too often we just go through life zoned in on ourselves and what we must accomplish before those precious 24 hours are over.  We miss beauty that is right in front of us.  Open your eyes to someone else and let them teach you something about themselves.  You’ll see them differently; you’ll see life differently; you’ll see yourself differently.

If someone does inspire you, be sure to let them know.  How wonderful to hear that someone’s life and passion has inspired someone else.  I believe it’s important to seek these things in life, as it helps us create better relationships with each other and also helps to keep ourselves motivated.

I’ll leave you with a quote I’ve always loved, as I think it’s very fitting for today.

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” – Howard Thurman