I am thankful all year through for the TWT and their reminder to stop and reflect about the slices that make this gift of life interesting and memorable! I wish you all a peaceful and safe holiday weekend.
Last weekend, I headed to the Putnam County Symphony where a group of dedicated musicians somehow find time to practice their violins, cellos, and oboes, without parental reminders and without pay amidst their busy lives. In spite of laundry and emails calling them, they work together to create beautiful music. It was amazing and a testament to the kind of enthusiasm that inspires humans to reach outside their comfort zones. Perhaps it is a similar fervor that
Propels runners to head into the darkness
In search of sunrises, serotonins and endorphins?
Drives painters and writers to risk hunger, comforts,
While they create masterpieces from their hearts and heads?
Moves gardeners into the heat of the day or into the driving rain,
To seize the moment when their plants and flowers might flourish?
Empowers athletes to forgo sleep, overlook pain, accept discomforts,
With a destination of a personal best in show for that moment in time?
Endows humans with unimaginable power to reach for a cure, accept risks,
Torture their bodies and minds in search of more days, more experiences, more life?
Grants the vigor needed to head to work when we are exhausted, overwhelmed?
Empowers the exhausted to be caregivers, providers for those who need support?
Yields the energy for cooking, baking, and transporting crowds this week!
9 comments:
Great slice! You made me think about how I might try to step out of my comfort zone more.
I love the poem-like list of all those who are stretching into their passions and this post makes me want to find a local orchestra concert to attend over the holidays, too - thank you for this inspiration to celebrate other's passions.
Anita,
It seems to me there is a moment of transport into passion from forced (perhaps internal) effort. It’s like a runner’s high. The thing becomes necessity rather than option. Writing poetry has become that for me. I rarely need a prompt for inspiration.
Anita - I agree with Glenda. When you love something, it is not a chore - it is a deep desire that transcends all the business in the world. I love that your poem is like a staircase to go step-by-step down into the creative process.
I went to my first rehearsal for Handel's Messiah last night. (I play French horn.) I do love playing with my community orchestra - the music, my fellow musicians, the challenge of playing well and communicating with an audience. Thank you for your post and for supporting your local arts organizations!
Loved your piece today! As a writer who has yet to make a dime from her writing (not completely true as I used to be a writer for a tutoring company but I gave that up to write novels full time), I hope we can all find the outlet that pays us in over abundant amounts of joy.
I love the curiosity and questioning of your poem. Isn’t it wonderful to live in a world where we can observe people motivated by and engaged in so many different passions.
I think it is that drive and desire that keeps us pushing our limits, expanding our boundaries, and keeps us growing. Arjeha
I am also amazed with the adults that 'fit in' the time to practice and play in the orchestra, when it's not their regular job. I love how your list reads like statements but are turned into questions, which then had me thinking of a few of my own. :)
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