What makes you interested in something or someone? What inspires you to want to know more about someone or something?
What makes you lean in when someone is talking to focus on what they’re saying?
When you’re browsing the internet, what is it that you’re really seeking, hoping to find?
What prompts you to click a link?
What is it about a blog or website which makes you want to read more?
What makes you want to listen to a vlog or podcast?
What prompts you to press ‘Follow’ on a social media account?
What sort of people interest you?
What subjects do you get passionate about?
What lights your inner fire? What gets your juices flowing? What inspires you to action?
Why am I asking these questions?
Yesternight I read the excerpt below:
“A man was shown a picture of a coat of arms by a friend. He was indifferent to it until he was persuaded that it was actually a picture of his own family’s coat of arms. From then on, he prized the picture, was excited in showing it to other people, and was hurt when they seemed uninterested. He reacted to the illustration on the piece of paper as thought it were an extension of himself.”
– Meanings and Emotions, The Personal Domain, Cognitive Therapy and the Emotional Disorders by Aaron T. Beck
Isn’t that a great story!
It really gives a three course meal for thought.
It puts into perspective all those times when we’re passionate about something, go to share it with others and can’t understand why they’re not as interested as we are in it and links it with those times when we’re the uninterested one about someone else’s passion.
It’s so frustrating when others aren’t interested in our interests, and so satisfying when they are.
Yesterday I watched the video below.
It’s a long watch, but great fun once you understand what’s going on (took me a couple of minutes to get into it). Basically a musician gets challenged to watch a video of a vocal coach, who was challenged to give her opinion of his vocal ability, reacting to his singing.
He’s so nervous, but his nerves soon give way to an almost childlike innocent joy as she professionally fangirls over his beautiful voice.
It’s a great story too!
It captures the essence of fanning someone else’s inner flame in a positive manner.
It shows how much we affect each other even if we’re complete strangers.
He’s obviously passionate about his music, singing, performing, and he’s been very successful with it. But that doesn’t mean that he’s immune to criticism.
In fact he says at one point that he expected her to say some unflattering things because he’s heard people knock his voice before. So when she simply sticks to praising him, you can see him light up from the inside out, his inner glow getting brighter and lighter.
It’s very heartwarming.
And she is one amazing woman – why do I think that? I don’t know her, I’ve only ever seen her in this 20 minute video. It’s an impression based on the effect she had on him, and how watching both of them affected me. I felt all smiley afterwards, so she’s amazing!
And so is he because he shared the video of him reacting to her reacting and apparently she’s now reacted to that with a super excited online squeee!
And all their viewers get to share in the fun they’re having, and maybe get inspired by it.
Sometimes it’s hard to tell what will interest us, grab our attention, ignite our bright fire, get us going in a good way, makes us happily excited.
It’s easier to know what will make us get angrily excited, what gets us going in a bad way, what will ignite our darker fire, put our brightness out, what triggers us.
In some ways it’s safer to be angry, critical, and burning up with frustration, as being happy, approving, and glowing with satisfaction involves the risk of making others angry, critical and frustrated because they want what we’ve got or just don’t want us to have it because they don’t.
Or maybe they think our inner lamp is outshining theirs… even though it couldn’t possibly do that, but we tend to always think the light over there is brighter than the one in here as our eyes have become accustomed to our own brightness but not the brightness of others.
In what moments do you notice just how bright your inner flame is?
Is it perhaps when you’re pursuing a passion?
Is it maybe when someone else basks in your light?
Is it when your light ignites theirs and theirs ignites yours?
Featured image is Soldier Lighting His Pipe from an Oil Lamp by unknown artist
An Upturned Soul 
Hi ,
I only skim thru this post but I ‘Like’ it, and I didn’t watch the YouTube vid yet. However, what you following the YouTube vid had me wanted to make a ‘ATM’ comment. I think I would skip it later if I comment now 😀
The YouTube story haha… “fanning someone else’s inner flame in a positive manner”; I get this feeling the very first time my muse praised my project well done in a text message. I reacted within with suspicion though I was flattered too by her comments, so I had politely accepted and humbly thanked her for her praise.
Last night, I watched a TED vid of Daniel Kahneman about cognition of ourselves, in regards with our experience and memory (https://www.ted.com/talks/daniel_kahneman_the_riddle_of_experience_vs_memory?language=en). How I came to this video was from a question that popped up in my head ‘Who are you?’ becos I’m in time-reality shifting state and trying to determine who’s talking), also I was thinking about my muse…
I did not draw any conclusion from D. Kahneman video talk but what he said there was rather thought-provoking. I did reviewed on that which brought me back to your previous posts because I rambled much in my comments about my muse’s story lol and those are closer ‘first hand’ info than my memory now if I’m distorted. Excuse me if this don’t make sense to you.
Your questions here will also be answered in my next post becos they wer what I was thinking about after watching the DK video. However, my post would be on 8th Jan (my time and if only I finished in time lol)… I will linked the post to you 😉
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No worries 😀
The “Who Are You?” question is a very complex and deep one to ponder. There are so many ways to approach it, and so many ways to go from it. Blogging is actually a good source of information about yourself, as you write posts you witness your self speaking to you through your words.
We catch glimpses of ourselves in all sorts of reflections – what we wear, what we do, what we think, what we say, what interests us and what doesn’t interest us, the shifts and changes, the attitudes and approaches, music, movies, media, books, nature, everything and everyone, et cetera.
I look forward to reading your post 😉
I might watch the TED Talk you shared although usually I can’t get passed the intro on TED Talks. DK is a Sun/Merc/Mars in Pisces ha! Exploring the riddle of memory suits his astro!
With a super stellium in Capricron atm, it’s a good time to slow down and get to know the self.
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Lol really Sun/Merc/Mars in Pisces no wonder I can’t draw any conclusion or fixate on an idea haha… The vid is 20 min i think but really it’s not a must watch, I’m only sharing the link for convenience sake if you are interested.
I realised I had lots of errs and words missing in my comment earlier, my apologies. But you get what i say anyway 😉
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