A New Year Story
I am passionate about writing. I have passion for what I write. I am passionate about the messages that are exchanged when communication occurs e.g. I write, you read! I am passionate about assisting people with improving their lives; their outlooks; their mindset. As a coach, I am passionate about people.
So why is this article so hard to write? Because I am also passionate about many other things. Sometimes I just get really passionate about sleep. Mainly because as an insomniac, I don’t get much!
If you haven’t been under a rock lately, you will no doubt have heard, read and seen all the various ways in which you can be passionate, have passion, get more passion, find a new passion, on so on!
Do we really need to be passionate ALL the time? Do we need to live every second as passionately as we can? As a young women, my answer was absolutely yes! I had been diagnosed with a chronic illness that saw me not likely to make it to old age. I dived into life, I got hobbies, I went travelling, threw myself out of planes, flew helicopters and did everything I could with passion and zeal, enthusiasm and vigour. Now I have reached the age I was told I’d never make (40 for anyone who is curious) I am a bit tired!
I still have passion; after all I am writing this article during the Christmas holiday period which is generally when we all get full of the spirit(s) of the festive season, not so much passion. You might be passionate about spending time with your family, but at this time of year, it is traditional that we all give passion a rest in exchange for parties!
It takes passion to be motivated to do something we don’t really want to do. Or we do want to do, but in our time, not to deadlines! So, how have I found the passion to write this article?
Now that I am a little older, I can see that passion is tiring. It can be exhausting to try and feel passion for something, everything, all the time. So I give myself a break from being passionate every now and then. I distract myself with some cheesy movies, or a great fiction; something that takes me away from the life I live, and puts me into another pair of shoes for a short time. Once I have had a vacation from myself in this way, I can take a deep breath and dive right back into that passion pool.
Sometimes I check out altogether, turn of the social media, the computer, the phone and just sit still – you might call it meditation. I just STOP. It has taken me a long time to forgive my all too human body for letting me down and being tired or unable to perform. It has taken a long time to convince myself, she who must squeeze all she can out of life before its too late; that it is okay to have a minute; an hour; a day; or even a week, where I do not achieve something, educate myself or be of service to the community in some way.
It’s okay to take a break from passion and being passionate. To sustain any kind of intense emotion takes energy. In this busy world, with the expectation on women to “have it all”, we can all feel guilty for not being there yet. We can be our own worst enemy for not achieving something according the goals, the rules, and the deadlines we set, or have set for us.
But how about, as we start another new year, filled with opportunities, excitement, growth and passion, we take a moment to remind ourselves that we are not machines, we are not robots; we are in fact simply human. We need our downtime. We need to have some silence or solace in order to gather our thoughts, file our facts and figures, to re-assess and regroup before the next round of passionate achievements.
And that is how I have written this article. By taking a break. By not worrying too much about the deadline. By taking a deep breath and realizing what I want to achieve this year. When I did that, I realized that I want to reach more women, I want to assist all of us to be easier on ourselves and manage our expectations for success along with our health – mental and physical.
And writing this article is a part of that passion that I have to ensure that every woman, no matter what they are going through; no matter what they wish to achieve this year and for their future; has an ally, a good friend, that says – it’s okay to just breathe. You are still a passionate creature. You have the ability to tap into that source of passion at any time you want. Just reconnect with why it is you want what you want; and remember why it is you do what you do.
And if in realizing that you are not passionate about something, make it okay to change your mind and be passionate about something else.
Passion is flexible and changeable. It is not fixed. It is movable. It is the creative flow that assists, along with some motivation, to move you towards your destiny, your goals, your desires. So I hope you all enjoyed your festive season as much as possible. I also hope that you have something that you can reconnect with and be passionate about this year. I know I do and I am excited and passionate about what 2019 has for all of us.
Passionate New Year to you all.