The Story of Place: Daily Dose of Passion

I'm not sure why I'm often inspired to write this blog by music. (I must listen to too much classical radio in the car.)

Last night, driving my ten-year-old son home from Karate, the final, rousing movement of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata came on the air.

This has got to be one of my favorite pieces of all time, so of course, I turned up the volume and let the furious, rumbling chords blast out through the speakers as I pulled into the line-up of rush-hour traffic.

Amsterdam, 2015 Photo by Erik Lundmark

My fingers tapped the steering wheel, but they absolutely itched with the desire to play the piano well enough to crank out such a magnificent, powerful, and memorable piece.

I thought about why this piece of music gets under my skin the way it does.

Noordwijk, Netherlands, 2015 Photo by Erik Lundmark

I came to the conclusion that my heart loves passion.

Keukenhof Gardens, Netherlands, 2015 Photo by Erik Lundmark

Not just in music.

My favorite love story: Wuthering Heights. The tale of Catherine and Heathcliff is so filled with passion that it makes my heart burst.

Keukenhof Gardens, Netherlands, 2015 Photo by Erik Lundmark

My favorite artist: Van Gogh. His life was consumed in his work. He brought color and texture to life in an extraordinary way that no other artist has ever captured.

Keukenhof Gardens, Netherlands, 2015 Photo by Erik Lundmark

I could go on, but the point is:

I'm touched and inspired to live my life with the kind of passion that begets greatness.

Lisse, Netherlands, 2015 Photo by Erik Lundmark

Day to day life can be filled with the mundane.

Staring at the seventeenth revision of your novel on a computer screen or doing never-ending loads of laundry or driving to Karate through rush-hour traffic seems like the exact opposite of passion.