What Inspires Me? 01.19.10 | Personal Reflection

Books, you'll come to learn, are like currency to my soul. The purchase, exchange, and transfer of thoughts and ideas and lessons and challenges set forth in literature - whether fiction or non - has the ability to fill me up and to move me in a way not many other things can. So, it won't be surprising that this week's inspiration comes from a book.

A book which I happened to listen to, after owning in audio format for sometime, only just a couple of weeks ago on our way home from Christmas travels. And then, immediately after listening to it, I read it all over again. Because it was just that good.

The book? The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho.



Everything about this book, and particularly the narration of it in audiobook, fascinates me. I literally can't get the echoes of both the characters, the plot, and the settings out of my head. It is a book about a boy following his dream in search of a treasure, only to find himself ending up in situations and destinations with people he hadn't expected to meet along the way. So much truth is laced into this fable. And long-gone are the days of good, inspiring fables which ask us to think abstractly about our own realities.

Probably one of the less significant, but most profound moments in the story is when the narrator describes the pursuit of using one's gift - and here he is speaking specifically about the alchemist himself - because it is what you are gifted at doing, not because anyone will see it. That a man, so knowledgeable and understanding and skilled at the turning of all metal into gold -chooses to do so in the middle of a desert with no one to watch or to be impressed with him.

When I let that sink in, I am just - deeply moved. Do what you do because you can, not because it is an means to an end or because it gains you notoriety with people.

And that's just one of the tiniest lessons from this chock-full-of-good-stuff story. Seriously.

If you've never read anything by Coelho before, I would start with this one. From his blog you can access a number of online versions of some of his work, including translations in a number of languages. Unfortunately, The Alchemist will not be found in the English translations of his works but you can always get a head start on the first chapter, thanks to this preview from Google Books. And lastly, if you are a fan of Jeremy Irons (I mean, really, with that voice, who isn't?) and like audiobooks, I'd highly recommend a listen.

What Inspires Me? 01.07.10 | Personal Reflection

I'm back at it again, only this time I've decided the subjects of these weekly installments have to be non-photography related. That is, apart from the photo I posted related to the source of my inspiration.

Because while drawing upon the work of other photographers is inspiring, the breadth of what I know and love about art and creativity doesn't stop there. In fact, when I turn my focus from that, I find I am often more inspired in my own work than I am by a beautiful shot by a fellow photographer - be it portrait or non-portrait related. And goodness knows I need not be reminded of how fantastic my fellow photographers are, because I am pretty much conscious of that every waking hour of the day.

And so, we begin again, only this time, anew. And now, the skies the limit. Because so many things in life are truly, inspiring. People, activities, good food, color palettes, websites, authors, books. Too much, sometimes, for a girl to handle.

But it's a one-at-a-time sort of thing, more often. Like, I'm getting my fix of inspiration consistently from one source for a couple of days and then something else sparks an interest and adds a little something to my fire. And boy do I need that fire in these cold days.

Alright, alright, so enough intro. What's pushing my buttons (in a good way) this week?



That's right, a map.

No no, just kidding. Actually, this is part of my drive to and from work these days. Big whoop, right? Not for this gal. Because everyday, I look forward to this and had you asked me three weeks ago I would have told you the commute was getting old. Sure, when the days are longer and the sun sets after I walk out of the office, it's one thing. But in the winter? And in the season my heart is in right now?

Oh, but then the shining light came in a couple of days of adventuring on my way to and from work to find just the right mixture of: desolate back roads, beautiful clearings, twists and turns, old farm houses, rustic cabins, massive homes, grazing cows and the occasional deer sighting to get me out of a funk. One that I look forward to every morning because I see myself in every bit of that road.

I see winter in her morning and afternoon glory and I just breathe so deeply, enough that I get my tank filled up to make it through the day and see the day turn to night with the softest hues and brilliance that I feel like I'd miss were I not on the three other more common paths one might take to Nashville from where we live.

But it's not the common path. And every day I ponder where I am being led in these days and where I want to go and the sort of risks and dreams those things require of me. And I'm more willing, everyday, to make them happen.

The Road Not Taken
by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
two roads diverged in a wood, and I --
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

What is inspiring you this week?