We are told: Find your passion and do something with it. Don't waste your God-given talent. Achieve something great. Make something of your life. Leave a legacy. Follow your passion...
"Passion" has come to be defined in our modern culture as something that we do, rather than something that we all just naturally feel because of our nature as human beings - spiritual beings. We worry about what it must mean about us if we have not discovered, cultivated, and maybe even monetized a skill in something that we love to do, and that can give structure, definition and identity to our self and our life.
Books are written about our quest for a passion to fulfill our lives. They tell us to search for our talents and skills, and to do something fruitful with this information. The focus is on deciding what to be, and the angst and effort involved in this process often leads to a feeling that somehow we are not "enough" if we are not sure of which activity we should be spending our effort on, or which skill we should be honing, in order to be most productive and fulfilled in life.
What if, instead of what to be, the focus was on how to be, and we were instructed to relax, stay awake (avoid numbing our senses with toxic food & drug), get curious, and view our life as an adventure, a string of present moments, an open-ended process of self-discovery? Our interests could emerge organically as we adventured along, simply noticing what brings us pleasure and naturally engaging with it more.
As a home-schooling mom, I saw my role as that of a facilitator, and my children were the guides. I would provide an environment rich with varied opportunities, then pay attention to what each child was drawn to, and facilitate more opportunities for him or her in that area. It worked beautifully, and all three children naturally learned to read and write while happily pursuing a variety of ever-changing interests. They are all remarkably self-directed today, and I believe that is in large part due to the fact that they were spared the anxiety associated with being told you need to learn a pre-determined set of facts and then figure out from that what you're supposed to be, and were instead allowed to just be themselves and develop their uniqueness organically.
As a wellness mentor, I give my clients permission to let go of the stream of pressurizing and often paralyzing messages urging them to figure out their passion. I realize that working hard to develop a particular talent or skill to a high level of competency can be very rewarding and bring many years of great pleasure and deep satisfaction. It can also be limiting, and believing that the measure of a life well lived is whether one has discovered an individual passion or mastered a particular skill can be debilitating, and can lead to a negative self-image.
If your senses are alive (and not too dulled by toxic food and drink, mental and physical exhaustion, illness, etc) then you experience passion and joy simply because you are human. Human beings have a deep capacity to feel, and thus a deep capacity for empathy, compassion, joy and pain. You don't have to find your passion - you naturally are passion. Simply being tuned-in to a full and spacious awareness of all of Nature's glory is passion enough for a lifetime!
Perhaps in your life you will also come upon something so compelling to you, a particular urge so strong, that it pulls you to dive deep with getting to know that one thing. In this case, you will be likely to achieve a high level of skill and accomplishment in this area. It may even become your life's focus. The outward achievement may be great, and the sense of accomplishment satisfying, but it is still simply an outer, material manifestation. It has nothing to do with your eternal essence, that unchanging, universal spiritual source-energy that makes you a spiritual being having a human experience, and defines who you really are. I'm talking about that light that dwells within all of us and reminds us that we are human beings, not human doings. I believe that the greatest gift we can give our fellow humans is to tap into our own inner light and joy, and let it shine and be generously shared with others.
What if you viewed your life as a playful adventure of learning, growing, and simply experiencing and sharing the joy of being alive and in awe of the magnificence all around us and within us? Be sure to do the things that give you a good feeling inside. Follow the urges that motivate and inspire you. Pay close attention to how you feel, and seek that which brings a sense of peace and joy. Perhaps our highest purpose as human beings, is simply to experience and share our true nature - the deep, expansive peace and loving goodness that resides as the core essence of our beautiful, spiritual being.
Excellent reminders! - It all has to do with purpose and meaning and a sense of belonging, and being able to transcend the cultural programming and create - and serve - something beyond self...