William Blake (1757-1827), painter, printmaker & exceptional poet during Britain’s Romantic Era, once proclaimed that—

“Exuberance is beauty!”

And how right he was! In a baby’s eyes, a child’s excitement, a boy’s exhilaration at catching his first fish, in an ingénue’s coquettish joy at her first date, or in a bride’s elation on her wedding day, their outward demeanor accurately reveals their inner, entire body, mind, & soul captivation.

Exuberance leaves nothing to the imagination. Watch any football game; it is easy to tell which side just scored just by the roar of the crowd. Exuberance is an obvious expression of our overjoyed sense of excitement within. Unfortunately, exuberance subsides to a more socially acceptable expression as we age. Even though exuberance is expressed quite differently by different kinds of people, it is, in fact, a sad reality that our exuberance follows our body’s descent into decay and becomes boringly sedated. It becomes a civilized passion, which is hardly a passion at all.

How sad.

Not that we should become like little children, with joyous expressions of abandon, nor like exuberant fans at a ball game going wild. But, rather…, something more; something that lifts us, and those around us, to a brighter, lighter plane of perspective; to a new life, as it were, for a moment, or even a lifetime. Too many of us have died, emotionally, passionately, way before our time. We’ve lost that zest for life that is quintessential for anyone claiming to be human…, and still breathing. Could it be that though we are not dead yet…, it is hard for others to notice any life in us. To some degree our increasing concern with caution and personal preservation has supplanted our passion for living, our joie de vivre. Could it be that we have actually lost our life’s core, our undergirding principles? It is difficult to feign life when there is little, if any, clarity about who we are within.

Therefore, for any exuberance to gain expression, we must first regain a sense of who we truly are, of our core values and of a sense of what we are all about. Only then can we let out a good R-O-A-R every now & then.

So let us get to work; so that we once more may express our joy with great exuberance of heart— shouting wildly, singing loudly, flapping our appendages in the air so all the world. Let us dance, twirling in circles with glee; let us do back flips, collapsing on the ground in a puddle of laughter. Let us let our enthusiasm for life be known for all to see. Exuberance is beauty!

You are not dead yet; neither am I. So let’s get at it! Reestablishing our core within so we can claim life to the fullest inside and out! Exuberance is so much more catching. It brings life to all who come near it.

Have a nice week,

Gary