Talent

"I'm telling you, people are born with it," he said. He was referring to the gifts and talents that set people apart from the crowd, that special edge that takes them beyond their time in history or their place in society and sets them completely apart from the rest of us, we masses of squirming, hungry, horny beasts, we who live and die without really leaving much of a mark. Well upon reflection, I think he's right. But I think it takes more than talent. It also takes good fortune, primarily the good fortune to head off in the right direction in life. I mean if Edison had been a farmer, maybe he would have lived and died unknown. Or maybe not. But my guess is that you have to find your niche, and that's where you will shine.

Joseph Campbell said we should follow our bliss, and the rest will follow naturally from that. And what is "bliss?" For me, it is the experience of being fully present in the moment, and I am never as "present" as I am when I'm creating something. When the inspiration is flowing, life is truly worth living.