Passion

Okay, so I really try to live my life with passion. Not always easy because the daily grind of living can really suck you into a mediocre abyss. You know, get up, shower, get dressed, go to work, get coffee, have lunch, play around on the web (sneaky highlight of the day), get your coat, say goodnight, get on the train, head home, make or order in dinner, check Facebook and other various sites, settle cheeks into the corner of the sofa and then go to bed. Whoo Hooo Good Times!! hmmmm I don't think so.

Now of course you may pepper some of these days with shopping at lunchtime, going to the post office (Really?!? I haven't bought a stamp in over a year, but hey its an activity) or if you are really ambitious going to the gym for a lunchtime class (you are ninja, if you do this). Ahh and the best addition is going out after work for cocktails. That really shakes the schedule up. Now if you aren't wise and have one too many, then you wobble home, eat some cereal because oh boy are you starving and must eat something. A trail of Toasty Oats follows you to your bedroom where you pass out on the bed. When you wait up and take a look in the mirror you are confronted with this...

and realize that you just can't hang the way you used to and know that its going to be a long day. So its shower, get dressed, got to work, blah, blah, blah.

I'm not with that and try really hard to introduce something new and exciting and though-provoking into each one of my days or daze (ha ha depends on how you look at it) It must be something I am excited about. A new experience. And that means stepping outside of my comfort zone. I always say I am never bored, although I have been in some boring situations but here is the thing, I will get my coat and leave. Oh well. Sorry. I just don't have the time to waste. If its boring and I stay, there REALLY must be a good reason and the benefit needs to be immediate.

Why am I saying this? Because after the rosiness of a new year starts to fade, it is very easy to fall into the old familiar trappings of what makes up our days. It is safe to stay the same and I don't want to be safe. I want to be scared and thrilled. I want to not know how my day will end. That on my train or bus or cab ride home I am coming from someplace new, that I met new and interesting people and had new conversations. I want to be constantly surprised and I want a lot to think about. I want the excitement of the world to propel me forward on my own personal journey. And it is clear that I have to seek that out and make it happen.

A couple of years ago, well more than a couple, now that I think about it (it is all one long day to me, a good day, but one day) I had a tattoo put on my arm just above my wrist. The tattoo is the Japanese character for Passion. It is a daily reminder to me of how I want to embrace this journey of life.

I was on the train the other day and a young Asian woman (maybe 21 or so) was standing in front of me, I was leaning against the door holding onto the overhead rail, and she was staring at my tattoo, then she looked really closely into my face. Now she had to look up at me, because I am pretty tall, 5'10", and she wasn't. She smiled at me and I smiled back. It's nice to smile. Anyway, when she got off the train, she touched my arm and said, "You will have a happy life". So I said, "Oh, thanks". And she was gone. I felt great after that. Why?! Because a complete stranger took one moment to say the very thing we all want, happiness. It was really a confirmation for me because I am already happy and in her one brief comment, she added to that happiness.

So here it the thing, find your passion and your happiness. Make your life full. Don't expect anyone to do it for you because these two things you must do for yourself. Make this your never ending adventure and your life will be amazing. Start by looking up at the sky everyday and smiling.