Passion for 2015

With the coming of the New Year, I feel as if I need to be doing something different as in write resolutions, or make those changes or do something I always wanted to do. Part of me, thinks that it is a wasted effort because I find it hard to keep my "resolutions". But then, if ever there was a time to start anew, the beginning of the year is it.

The word that hits me this year is - Passion. 

Now, passion and I have very little in common. Especially, when I think of the "Mills and Boon" or "50 shades of Grey" kind of passion - I'm like - hmm, sounds really nice. I should try it sometime.

Yet, when I think of passion in the true sense, I think of someone who lives life to the fullest. Someone, who doesn't necessarily do things perfectly, but puts their heart and soul into everything they do. Someone, who is driven by a purpose, a goal, or life itself. Someone, who is alive, in the moment. Someone, who makes mistakes, but picks themselves up and goes at it again. Someone, who finds time to treasure those little moments of joy, to let those moments soak in. Someone. who is unashamedly and passionately Christian -  not in a freaky, legalistic way, but someone who radiates that joy from knowing Christ. Because, I honestly believe that God is the source of that passion.

Sometimes, when my husband and I talk about our kids and think about their future, we talk about how the kids should do something that they feel passionately about. 

If you ask Daniel what he wants to do when he grows up, he would say "Paleontologist". Of course, this keeps changing. A few years ago, it would have been a "train driver", or something of that sort. I would hope that as the kids grow up, they would re-evaluate their passion/interests and see if it is realistic and practical. It wouldn't be fun if following your passion means that one cannot make ends meet. 

Speaking of interests, I always had an interest in literature. I would obsess over grammar and be smitten about poetry. I think that I had a diary since I was nine years old, and I've always written about something or the other. I feel the same way about cooking now. I spend hours researching recipes, and I like working in the kitchen. In a strange way, I find it joyful to see people gather around the food table - eating, drinking and enjoying time together. Cooking for me, translates as an expression of love.

Yet, I don't think that being a cook or choosing literature would have worked as career options for me. Passion should not limit an individual's capacity to learn. The human mind is limitless in its' capacity to learn.

I guess when choosing a career based solely on passion, one might overlook that every career has its' share of "drudgery". So, it might seem as if unless I enjoy my work 100% of the time, I'm not doing something I'm meant to do. One can ignore the discipline that is required to persevere through drudgery.

I struggled the first few years of engineering. It really seemed as if I was doing something totally alien and complicated for my brain. But, I'm glad that I stuck with it, because I finally got the hang of it and started enjoying it.

"That’s why I would never advise anyone to “follow their passion” until I understand who they are, what they want, and why they want it. Even then, I’d be cautious. Passion is too important to be without, but too fickle to be guided by. Which is why I’m more inclined to say, “Don’t Follow Your Passion, But Always Bring it With You." - Mike Rowes 

So, this coming year, my prayer is to bring my passion with me. 

I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free,
For His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
“Let not your heart be troubled,” His tender word I hear,
And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears;
Though by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;