Warning: This post is messy. It may not
really have a point and it's vague most of the
time, but my butt is in my chair, and my hands....
You get the picture, right? If you enjoy unbridled
philosophizing by lay philosophers, by all means,
read the whole thing!
You get the picture, right? If you enjoy unbridled
philosophizing by lay philosophers, by all means,
read the whole thing!
I've seen a meme on the internet lately that says.... .....hold on. (I'm sure I can find it and put it up for some visual stimulation....)
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...Don't mention it. It was no trouble. To be honest, I am a big fan of visual aides, too.
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What do you think?
Here's what I think:
First of all, when I was in high school, I had some long, written conversations (notes passed back and forth) with a friend in math class. The only "conversation" I really remember is the one we had about Love and Passion. My friend argued that Love was stronger and better. I argued for Passion.
I see his point now. I could argue still for Passion, but it would just be for fun. Love is bigger and deeper. Love includes patience and self-sacrifice. Love is like the ocean. Passion like a wave. High School Me might've said that Passion is the wind that fills the sail. (Pretty sure I did write that.) Middle-aged Me would say that Love is the ocean that holds the boat.
So... My views have changed over time; but that's almost unrelated, isn't it? This meme that I've posted above isn't really about "Passion." It's about "Love." At least that's how it seems to me now. This could all be debated. (It could be a looong debate, too, because I like the give and take of debate and I'm pretty undisciplined...)
I bet there are a lot of people out there who think about their calling(s?) in life. For me, it has been something I've come back to since... well, since I started to think about the future. Probably when I started playing house or playing school with friends, and when I actually thought about the perennial question adults ask kids: "What do you want to be when you grow up?"
...A teacher.
That was always my answer--until I realized there were, oh, a million different jobs and not just 10: a teacher, a fireman, a doctor, a lawyer, a farmer, a banker, a police officer, train engineer, artist and a pilot. Of course, those are random, but eight year-olds don't usually consider careers in Public Relations Management or ... Sheet Metal. I always said I wanted to be a teacher, but I think I really just wanted to be a mom. I've also wanted to be a doctor, a writer, and artist and... a teacher.
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pas·sion noun \ˈpa-shən\: a strong feeling of enthusiasm or excitement for something or about doing something
Passion. Now we're getting somewhere. An exact definition helps.
Using this definition, I am going to spend a few minutes trying to list my passions:
- creating
- seeing/helping people grow, develop or learn
- learning
- science
- psychology/sociology/why people act the way they do
- language
- art
- seeing compassion and empathy increase in the world
- recognizing and making visible diverse beauty in the world
- the value of labor (work)
What would your list look like? How many of the passions in your life do you get to dabble in daily?
