Are you inspir-ed yet?

Let's start where it begins: inspiration.

Nothing was ever created without that first spark of ingenuity.  For creation to take place, not only do we have to have the idea of what to create in mind, but we have to have the inspiration and energy to make it happen.

For me, inspiration hides in many things:

• An afternoon in the kitchen
• A bright day in the great outdoors
• Conversation over that second glass of wine
• Others passionate response to a cause
• Personal reflection; re-reading that half-filled journal from 3 years ago
• Positive reinforcement; the pep talk from a best friend
• Broadening horizons; visiting somewhere new; travel
• Breaking routine; pushing through boredom; finding something new in a familiar place

Help me create an even better list.  What inspires you?

Start-ed to Fall.

Welcome to the very beginning of my favorite season.  The season of burnt orange, rusty red and chocolately brown.  The season of cable knit sweaters, soft leather boots and light weight jackets.  The season of crisp air, fallen leaves and cozy nights.  The season of juicy apples, velvety pumpkin and spicy cinnamon.  The season of family dinners, crackling fires and football games.  The season of perfect weather for no-frizz hair, balanced skin and walking outside without sweating.

There's something about fall that screams 'new' to me.  Perhaps it's the association fall always has with going back to school, buying new supplies and a new wardrobe.  Perhaps it's the obvious sense of change that permeates the air.  Fall allows us all to start over, forget about the somewhat exhausting long summer days and start fresh in the crisp air. 

In fact, I find I make most of my best resolutions in the fall.  Here is this year's resolution:

This year I will make more of an effort to play to my passions: take a cooking course, read about my favorite idols (currently reading Julia Child's memoir and LOVING it), learn more about wine, write in my journal, speak more french, bake a perfect pie crust, keep up with distant friends. 

It sounds easy enough: do what you love.  But sometimes, this can be the hardest thing to achieve.  First, we have to identify what it is that makes us happy, and then find the time to do it.  It wasn't until this weekend, while spending the afternoon nose-deep in Julia's descriptions of how to make an omlette that I realized what I need to be doing.  And so, I put down the book and made oatmeal raisin cookies, zucchini bread, chicken schnitzel and zucchini fritters.

I fell into bed with a full stomach and heart.  Ah, fall.  You're always so good to me.

What is your fall resolution?

Neglect-ed.

Isn't it funny how finite the space in our life can be?  We pack it to the brim with responsibilites, and relationships, and passions, and when we try to add just one more thing, one more drop, a little spills over and we have to take something out of the cup to drink it all down.

I'm sorry to say that is what happened with you, dear -ed chroniclers.  I filled my life with family road trips, and work projects, and book club, and late night phone calls, and early morning gym sessions.  And before I knew it, I'd gone a week without a hello.  Though I'm sorry to have neglected you lately, I am not sorry that my life has been at the brim.  A full life is a happy life--and I'm not just talking about activities.  A life full of love, and laughter, and little e-mails 'hello' is the happiest of all.

You only have one life, and who knows how tall the glass will be.  Fill it until it spills over, and then gulp down the delicious nectar squeezed out of every experience.  Trust me, there's room for a walk in the sunshine, and a margarita with the girls among your laundry and grocery shopping.  And I guarantee, your thirst will never be quenched until you drink every last drop, every last drop, every last drop.

pic: weheartit

Energiz-ed.

Energy, defined as available power, exists in two forms: physical and spiritual.  The physical energy is processed when we fuel our body with food and burn the calories as we perform tasks.  Whereas, spiritual or emotional energy is processed when we fuel our body with experiences and use up our emotional and mental capacity.  Essentially, physical energy is cellular; spiritual energy is "soul-ular". 

At different points in our lives we dispense this soul energy in various ways--at the beginning of a new relationship, we invest a large chunk in our lover: discovering who we are together, exploring the feelings they inspire in us, and building a foundation of soulful connection so that eventually it is not as exhausting to co-exist.  Other times we spend our energy on a passion; training for a marathon requires not only physical endurance, but a dedication of soul.  We cannot commit to a goal without pooling our emotional energy and focusing on the end result. 

However, I believe we have a finite amount of both types of energy; there is a limit, a point where we simply become exhausted, so it is important to learn how to spend your energy.  Life is at it's best when we have found a way to invest our energy in different pursuits: family, passion, love, learning, friends, etc.   In order to feel completely centered in life, we need to become efficient managers of our spiritual energy, to know when we can spend a little more in one area, and when we need to pull back and spend a little on ourselves.  In essence, this is my attempt at a somewhat scientific explanation of the need for balance in one's life.

Ironically, it can be exhausting just trying to figure out where to spend our energy.  But when we do get it right, the result is a blissful hum that resonates beyond our physical existence. 

The result is peace.

pic: weheartit