Do you remember the first time?

I’m talking about the first time you realized you loved doing something. 

Do you remember it? 

Maybe it was building something with your hands when you were a child. 

Maybe it was the first time you cooked something from scratch. 

Or maybe it was the first time you read a book and got lost in the story. 

Because trust me — I remember mine. 

I was 6 years old, sitting in front of our 1998 iMac G3 — you know, the first rendition of the brick iMac with the plastic blue casing around the back? Yeah — that one. I remember opening up a fresh Appleworks 6 document (Google Docs was definitely non-existent), and the feeling of the clickety-clack of the keyboard beneath me. 

And then, I started writing. It began, of course, with “Once upon a time” — because this was going to be a fairy tale. I titled it Stinky Cindy: A story about a smelly princess and her smelly talking cow. Cindy, (based on Cinderella, of course), was a fairy-tale spinoff that told the story of a smelly princess, who wore tattered clothes and wandered the forest with her only friend, her (also) smelly cow, as she tried to break the curse of permanently smelling awful. 

Things were hard for Cindy. No one wanted to speak to her, and no one could see just how amazing she was. They wouldn’t even get close enough to know her because, well, she smelled like wet swamp and cow manure. And so, she wandered around the forest, talking to herself and her cow — until finally, (on page 6 of my debut story), she realized that no prince or person could come save her. In fact, Cindy realized the solution to her problem was to stop searching for it in someone else, and instead, take the cold plunge into the river and just take a freaking bath. 

Okay so maybe those weren’t my exact words at 6 years old but you get the gist. 

But that’s not the reason I’m telling you this. 

Because it wasn’t just about the fairytale itself and the moral (of seemingly simple Feminist theory and self-empowerment) that was important about that day. 

What comes to mind, instead, was the feeling that came right after, when I saw the freshly printed pages in my hands trembling underneath them — because I did that. 

And that I wanted to feel that feeling of excitement over, and over, and over, again. 

So it was then, at six years old, that I decided that I was a writer. After all, there was physical proof of a story right in my hands that came from me — and that was I needed to convince me that I also had to keep on doing it. 

And the most magical part of it all? 

I’m not the only one who has these stories. 

You do too. 

In fact, I asked some of you to share your stories of the first time you realized you loved doing something and some of your stories were, well, you should read them for yourselves.

Click Here to Read the Rest of the Stories on Instagram 

Beautiful, right? See, there’s something so incredible about hearing stories of people finding their passions, and the things that really light up their heart and drive, because all we often see is everything else. 

Somewhere in the mix of our “busy” lives, we got so caught up in our routines, our must-do’s, and our work, that we forgot to experience the little moments of pure, unfiltered joy, of really loving something that we do.  

So this is your invitation: 

Do the thing that sets your heart on fire.  

Remember the feeling of doing something you love.  

And share those moments with the people around you who need the reminder.  

Creative, passionate, inspired energy is contagious {first_name}}.  

So if you have it: share it.  

And if you don’t: that’s okay, too. But remind yourself of the feeling. Ask yourself the question of when was your first time you fell in love with, you know, that thing you’re so passionate about.  

Your past excitement and inspiration is contagious too. And I promise you, in the mix of taking the time to find these feelings, you’ll find it again.  

And then?  

Create. Do. Paint. Cook. Write. Dance. Make that organized AF spreadsheet. And not because Instagram, or Youtube, or anyone else is watching.

Do it for you.

P.S. No Glossary this week, because this week, you get to define what the feeling of love, passion, and inspiration is for you. 

P.P.S. Want to be held accountable to a passion project or idea you want to try (or re-ignite) this weekend? Hit reply and I’ll check back in with you next Wednesday to see how it went. I can’t wait for you to do this. Because you can. And you will. 

P.P.P.S. There’s no pressure, okay? Because reminder: doing something you love does not have to be [and should not always be] related to your work, building your brand, or creating a new blog. Do this for you.