With the new year almost upon us, I have felt the need to fill my inspiration well with an extra hefty dose of sparkle and light.  This week my reading, web-surfing and DVD watching have all been centered around stories that make me want to burst out into the world on a white horse with my own colorful banner and be a force of good in every way possible.

It started when I watched the entire series of the "Long Way Around", the chronicle of an around the world  motorcyle trip taken by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman.  This is one of the most inspiring and fascinating documentaries I have ever watched.  These two had every reason not to do this trip yet they pulled it off with a wonderful sense of adventure and humor.  I have been on the back of a motorcycle on a trip up the coast of California, into Oregon and back down California past Mt. Shasta and through Yosemite and Sequoia, so I have a wee bit of insight into how much more exhausting it is to travel on a motorcycle versus a plane, train or automobile.  The trip I took was peanuts compared to the experience McGregor and Boorman had going through Mongolia, the Ukraine and far eastern Russia, but felt pretty bold nonetheless.  I love that these two had a crazy dream and made it real; this is my favorite kind of story.

I have also started reading Character is Destiny, a book of "Inspiring Stories Every Young Person Should Know and Every Adult Should Remember".  The book is organized by chapters such as "Curiosity", "Faith", "Confidence" and "Responsibility", and each chapter is a story about someone who exemplifies each theme or topic.  I have decided to get through this book by opening it at a random page and reading that chapter.  The first three chapters I’ve opened up to are "Authenticity" (Joan of Arc), "Faith" (a Christian prison guard in Vietnam) and "Curiosity" (Charles Darwin).  I like the idea of opening up to whatever chapter I need to read most.

I also read about Bill Gates in the "Person of the Year" issue of Time Magazine.  I have to be honest and say I have ever been a huge Bill Gates fan.  I am a self-professed Mac snob, and I think Steve Jobs is a total badass.  But after reading about the work his foundation has done and is doing I have to say I think he is a badass too.  Perhaps this was his greater mission; perhaps the real purpose behind all the wealth that Microsoft has generated is to save the world.  For many people that the world doesn’t know how to deal with because the problems are so immense and complicated, he most certainly is saving the world.  Their world.  Their lives.

I am so excited for the new year to begin and to get back to work next week.  I have had time this week to relax, spend time with family and friends and fill my inspiration well.  Now it is time to take all of that energy, untap the spigot and aim it back into the world.  Like opening up a fire hydrant on a steaming August day in New York City, I want to use my creative energy to provide some kind of relief from what can be an exhausting world.