Inspiration

Yesterday I had lunch with my big brother.  We meet up fairly often at this little place that he calls his "favorite Malaysian place" (I guess I don't have enough Malaysian places that I frequent to have a favorite) where he's like Norm on Cheers.  Seriously, the staff shouts his name out when he comes it!  It's hilarious.  But it's always nice to have lunch with him, it turns into a 2-hour thing where we talk about everything from cars to parenting to funny movies.  Yesterday we talked about being inspired.  I know, deep, huh?  He's a graphic artist and animator, and he's self-employed.  So he has to stay inspired in order to earn a paycheck.  But he loves it.  I just trudge through my day to day life not thinking about it.

But yesterday I started thinking about it, and I think the reason I feel like I am not inspired might be because I'm sort of always inspired.  Cheesy, but I think it's true.  I get inspired by so many things that I don't even know what to do with it all.  After I started thinking about it, here's some things I noticed:

I'm inspired by music.  All the time.  I just purchased the new Michael Buble Christmas album.  It's the first Christmas music I've bought this year, and it's so good!  And just hearing the little bit of it that I listened to yesterday gave me goosebumps.  It makes me think of the Christmas season.  Of the smells, the foods, the cold, everything.

I'm inspired by the news, by sweet stories like a kid I saw a story on last night who has macular degeneration, but he doesn't let it slow him down.  He plays soccer, he keeps up with his schoolwork, he lives a healthy kid life, even though he's losing his vision.  I have been so lucky--stories like that point out how lucky I am, keep me in check when I feel like whining.

And last night before bedtime, J curled up in my lap.  He's my cuddler.  I sat there touching his soft little face, feeling his damp post-shower hair, squeezing his not-so-small anymore feet.  I am inspired by my kids, by watching them grow.  By seeing them walk that line between being my babies and being teenagers.  At 9 and 10, they are already good little people.  They are funny and kind, and they're going to be good men.  And the reason it inspires me is that I have no idea how it happened.

So it's the little things.  And I need to pay more attention to them in my day-to-day life.  Not just stop and smell the roses, but to notice the beauty in a boring, normal day.  Because there is so much!