Tag Archives: passion

Awareness of Your True Passion

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For a long time, my life felt like I was in the movie Groundhog’s Day, where a man finds himself living the same day over and over again.  I felt like I was in a forest trying to get out and kept ending up at the same tree from which I started.  I continuously kept going round and round in a circle until I decided to change me.  I began to focus on changing my perceptions and behavior instead of blaming “them” and reflecting on how “they” should be.  I began the life-long process of refining and molding myself into what I wanted to see in others and in my life.

More frequently, I recognize how I can better speak and react.  After tense interactions, I ask myself, “Were my words and actions loving and compassionate in the face of unfairness and harshness?  Did I maintain composure and a steadfastness of being centered in my internal peace and joy?  Am I even aware of and, therefore, capable of expressing my internal peace and joy?”  Often, the answer is still no; but, I am increasing my self awareness.  At least I have a clue as to what I need to work on.  I’m not yet out of the forest, but I haven’t seen that tree in awhile.

I now re-define “obstacles” and “failures” as opportunities to evolve.  In athletic pursuits, we know that, to become more skillful, we must practice consistently and work on techniques.  Developing our inner selves takes the same commitment and perseverance.  I commit myself to that strategy.

You may find that your perceived setbacks were actually building blocks that form the foundation of a life that is more in line with your nature than your notions.

For example, sometimes what you believe to be your passion may not manifest according to your exact vision.  If you change your perspective and become open and receptive to what is currently unknown, you could find yourself moving with greater speed and clarity towards your destiny.

I want to be a successful writer.  However, as I review my primary activities past and present, I see that that I have repeatedly pursued opportunities to increase my knowledge of the Essence of Life.  I obtained a masters degree in theology, not a masters in fine arts with an emphasis in writing.  I continue to study religions and various Eastern philosophies.  I practice yoga.  I attend workshops and seminars on opening oneself to Universal Energy.  Today, I recognize that my writing is not my primary goal.  It is one expression of my journey on the Path towards knowing the Infinity of my Self.

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Following Your Passion 1

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The path leading to your desires is not always clear.  How do we even find our passion?  Even if the passion is identified, the road may be full of twists, turns, and obstacles.  How do we keep going?  How do we persevere?

The phrase “follow your passion” is like the goal of “being happy.”  It is an intangible that has no clear guideline for how to achieve it.  It is the “how” that challenges most of us when we think about the intangibles of life.  We want to love what we do.  We want peace, joy, contentment, love, and success – and we want it now.  But, becoming anything is a process.  It takes adherence to techniques, to the development of skills, to retraining the mind.  Some would say that our consciousness needs to change.

Because of life’s stresses, we may not remember what it feels like to have passion.  Neverending obligations and responsibilities form the content of our days.  We have an idea of what we would like to do, but take no steps toward implementing it.  Is it because we have become fearful of trying new things?  Is it because we can’t foresee instant results?  That’s what a j-o-b brings.  We are conditioned to get a paycheck every two weeks.  When pursuing our passions, we might not see “success” for years, especially if “success” is defined as money, recognition, or status.

“Following your passion” is generally associated with making money.  Numerous self-help books tell us that we should be able to make money by doing something about which we are passionate.  This focus on compensation may blind us to what is inherently joyful.  We will constantly think, “How will I make money from this?” instead of “I love doing this so much, I want to do it as often and as much as I can.”

To identify our passions, it may help to remember our childhoods.  When I was in high school, I held almost every student government position.  I volunteered in various areas of community service.  It was a natural progression for me to choose to work in a congressional office as a college intern.  This turned into a full time job that I totally loved.  At no point prior to that employment did I think, “My perfect job would be to work in Congress” or “I am passionate about politics.”

I organically evolved into that position as a result of participating in activities that I totally enjoyed.  My interests led me to endeavors that ultimately led to a paid position.  My beloved first job exposed me to new passions, which encouraged me to venture into new and uncertain environments.

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Do Your Thing

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Find something you enjoy doing so much that you’d be willing to do it for nothing . . . and you’ll never work a day in your life.  Ronald G. Wayne

Do your thing and don’t care if they like it.  Tina Fey

There is no passion to be found in playing small and in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.   Nelson Mandela

It is the soul’s duty to be loyal to its own desires.  It must abandon itself to its master passion.   Rebecca West

Follow what you are genuinely passionate about and let that guide you to your destination.  Diane Sawyer

Every great dream begins with a dreamer.  Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars and to change the world.  Harriet Tubman

You have to be burning with an idea, or a problem, or a wrong that you want to right.  If you’re not passionate enough from the start, you’ll never stick it out.   Steve Jobs

Chase your passion, not your pension.   Denis Waitley

A Passionate Life

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I identified very strongly with the Grey’s Anatomy character Christina Yang.  She always chose herself, except within the first three seasons when she chose Dr. Burke.  But that was because she admired him.  Although a junior resident, he gave her special opportunities to learn advanced heart surgery skills.  He provided a path to her continued expansion.  More importantly, Burke was like Christina.  He had a passion for infinite growth.  He had confidence.  He took risks.  He was exceedingly skilled and knowledgeable.  Christina couldn’t help but love him.  He was a male her.

The difference between me and Christina is that I didn’t identify within me something about which I was so passionate that I would give up everything.  My passions were externally focused.  I sacrificed all for my jobs, my family, and my mom.

Because my passions were for other than me, my efforts frequently ended in disappointment.  I facilitated the needs and desires of others.  Yes, I enjoyed what I did and gave; but, my accomplishments ultimately benefited them more than me, which was predictable because I supported their dreams and goals.

Grey’s Anatomy was the first television series in which a key character left and I wasn’t mad at the producers and writers.  The season of Christina’s departure explored all of the possible life-changing scenarios that Christina could have chosen.  The one that I wanted for her was to stay with Owen and have babies.  In her vision of this choice, she was pregnant with their second child.  Owen was immensely happy while she regretted giving up the possibility of her greatness as a world-renowned surgeon.

Every possible ending that fans would have wished for Christina involved her compromising her passion and dreams for herself.  In each, she was happy for and pleasing to others, but unfulfilled and unaccomplished in the ultimate manifestation of her gift.

In the season finale, Christina was offered and chose a position that allowed her to be unlimited in her potential.  Importantly, it also showed how much she knowingly gave up – proximity to the man she loved, her best friends, and the opportunity to be reasonably successful in an environment surrounded by supportive co-workers.  She could have settled and been beyond ok by most standards.  Instead, she chose to reach for the stars and follow her unflinching passion.

Christina chose the means and opportunity for limitless mobility.  She chose the power to determine and actualize her destiny.  That is my desire for myself.

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Life’s Passion

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As I was cooking, which is very enjoyable and relaxing to me, I remembered a story about a man who came out of a successful surgery, but didn’t want to take painkillers.  He said that he wanted to be able to feel.  Feeling the pain reminded him that he was alive.  This is what passion does.  It reminds us that we are alive.

So many adults don’t feel the passion of youth.  There have been too many hurts, too much loss, too many deaths.  Intense and repeated trauma can negatively affect daily life.  I chose to shut down that intense part of myself, believing that the pain matching the joy was just too much.  I would rather not have that much joy.

But I miss my passion and excitement.  I miss the feeling of totally letting myself go without fear, worry, or inhibition.  Not caring what people think.  I miss the joy of being free!  To me, that is the epitome of being alive.  Perhaps that’s why I became a human being – to feel.

When I was young, I became passionate about external things: jogging, skating, being in love, my job, civil and human rights, traveling.  Perhaps because of the drama and trauma that I have been through, I now want to be passionately in love with me, with the Magnificence that is me.  I want to be in love with Love itself, with being loving.

Looking back, I see how I have grown as a result of the pain in my life.  I now view my current situation as a mechanism for developing awareness.  While I most certainly desire more financial stability, I am so very blessed to have time to sit in silence and to engage in joyful activities that allow me to reflect, read, and write.  If my circumstances were different, I would not have time to be still, to seek knowledge, and to grow.  If I was working a traditional 9 to 6 with the additional commute, I would be running around on weekends doing what I couldn’t do during the week.  If I had roommates, I would be interacting with them and the consequences of their lives.

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