The Passion Problem

A while ago I was at a dinner and got cornered by a woman, newly divorced after a long marriage and a bit tipsy on wine and tequila who was in that What-Do-I-Do-Now threshold. She asked me this  question:

"Tell me, what are you passionate about?"

Oh, Jesus, I thought. Really? Aren't we past all that now? Instead I  mumbled back, "Oh, I've stopped hanging my hat on that kind of thinking." It seems everyone was chasing after passion around Y2K and now the frenzy has died.

Passion. Everyone wants it. And why? Did you know "Passion" is from the latin word "Passio" which means to Suffer? (To suffer for what you love, actually; I learned this on an Easter radio broadcast of Bach's Passion of the Christ.)

Here's my 2c: Passion doesn't have to be about WHAT you do. Why not make it about HOW you do; how you exist inside your skin and move through life and absord the world around you, connect with people you care about. Look at kids and how passionately they express themselves. They're not hanging their hats on one THING that makes them passionate. It's just how they are.

OK, so yes, I get it --  it adds purpose to life to be passionate about something. But if you can tap into a current of deep feeling and caring inside yourself, you'll find passion is tied to the simple things in life starting with being alive and connecting to whatever it is you find beautiful.

If you've lost your passion compass, my advice: Slow down and start paying attention to the little things that bring you into the moment with deep appreciation: a beautiful piece of writing, music, the sunrise, a conversation with someone you love, rewatching a favorite movie, staring at the water or your child's face. You name it.

Passion? It's inside you. Find it there first and then protect it and share it and nurture it.

And have fun with it, LOTS of fun.