Meraki

For those who've seen the movie, Brown Sugar (2002), you know how Sidney would always open her interviews with people by asking "When did you first fall in love with Hip Hop?" (by the way, if you haven't seen this movie, take some time to see it after you read this post. It's a classic!) I always imagined I'd be asked a similar question in the same manner; "So, when did you first fall in love with books and writing?" In my quest to manifest my best life, I've begun visualizing myself in interviews where I'm talking about the success of my own books and this blog (I know... it's funny to admit and definitely takes a lot of faith in myself along with a vivid imagination). I've had such immersive experiences where I have envisioned the details in my and the interviewers' outfits, even the settings, the furniture, quirky little things happening behind the scenes. It's crazy in the best way. These visions have become great motivation as I work toward seeing them come to fruition.

I first fell in love with books when I read Sideways Stories From Wayside School, a book series written by Louis Sachar, when I was a kid. The stories were always so weird and so imaginative, I'd wonder how the author thought of them. As I read more books,I became invested in learning about the creative process the authors undertook, the circumstances and experiences that gave way to each story, and the authors' reasons for producing them. So often I think about the "why" after I've finished reading a story. The same is the case for when I'm listening to music, watching a movie, or looking at art. I believe that most creative works are the result of something referred to as #meraki, a Greek word that loosely translates to "doing something with your whole heart and passion" or "leaving a piece of yourself (your soul, creativity, or love) in your work." If you're not putting your heart into your works, why create them at all? Furthermore, is this choice? A compulsion? Is it optional? Is there a remnant of our souls on everything we create without our knowing?

meraki [may-rah-kee] - (adjective) doing something with your whole heart and passion; leaving a piece of yourself (your soul, creativity, or love) in your work.

Art is an opportunity to create a legacy. When we inevitably pass on from this life to the next, whatever that looks like to you within your realm of beliefs, be it endless bliss in heaven or a field of sunflowers, a restful existence as a gaseous mass in space, etc, all that remains will be the memories and stories others share and our works. In a lot of ways, art is preservation. It can maintain our sanity and our "soulishness" for generations to come, depending on the integrity of the medium. Take this blog for instance, as I type these words, I am projecting forward into the unknown and wondering who might be reading this post weeks/months/years from now. This will be a relic of my former thoughts and ideas, a record for me to use in reflecting on the kairos that moved me to share these sentiments. It's hard to really articulate how heavy all of it weighs on me and how special it is to me. This blog is an opportunity to share more of my heart and soul with people I may never meet in this lifetime, but with whom I may be subtly connected as you ingest my works. It's simple, it's emotional; it's the sort of thing that I daydream about.

Meraki speaks to the reason why we do anything... It's why so many people choose to have children. It's why we take pictures of ourselves. It's why we cook meals for people we love. It's why we decorate our homes with our favorite things and enjoy when people enter these spaces and gain a better sense of who we are. It's why we love athletes and praise their amazing abilities long after they've left their sports. It's why we write our names on birthday cards and sign love letters. We have this basic need to create memories that contribute to our legacies, immortalizing ourselves. I believe that all of this is done in an effort to leave a message behind that has our spirit etched somewhere on it as a record of our existence. It's a beautiful thing because it's the embrace of the reality that life is a fleeting experience, "a vapor in the wind" that we need to make the most of while we can. It puts the pressure on us to live a purposeful life with a positive impact that will encourage those to follow to do the same.

Now, here are my action items for you:

1. Delve into the deep work I reference in a previous post to determine how you will immortalize yourself

2. Live a beautiful life worthy of celebrating everyday. Put your heart and soul into EVERYTHING you do, whether it's folding your clothes, speaking before a crowd of hundreds of thousands, or making pizza for a family dinner. Share your bright spirit for the world around you to savor

3. Share in the comments below about your previous and forthcoming moments of meraki

Thanks for reading.

#creation #legacy #immortalize #heart #passion #soul #creativity #love