A week ago, I was parked in the
local Lord & Taylor parking lot and came out of the store to find that
someone had hit the passenger side of my car. The damage was mostly streaks of
paint from the other car with some sizeable scrapes – nothing huge, but the
person who did it didn’t leave a note – nothing. Needless to say, I was
annoyed. A friend compounded most of the paint off my car, but the scrapes are
deep and will need a substantial amount of touching up. A few days later, the
same friend’s 1968 Mustang won best in show at a car show. Then, a day or two
later I came across the quote, “It’s not what you drive, it’s what drives you”
in a magazine article; and this morning, on my way to the hairdresser’s, the
old Car’s song “Drive” came on the radio. Click Here to Listen to "Drive"
Seemed a whole lot of driving-related activity, and that thought nudged me to reflect upon what drives us, what things motivate people, and how those motivations impact our own and others’ lives.
Seemed a whole lot of driving-related activity, and that thought nudged me to reflect upon what drives us, what things motivate people, and how those motivations impact our own and others’ lives.
“What drives you?” suggests
purpose – your fundamental “reason why.” What’s your motivating force, your energy’s inspiration, the essential
gear in your metaphorical wheel, the axle around which your life’s wheel turns?
What gives your life purpose and meaning?
Are you driven
- to do well at your job,
- to succeed in personal matters,
- to care for your family,
- to be healthy,
- to serve others,
- to be accepted,
- to be popular,
- to be honest and reliable,
- to live a simple life,
- to acquire wealth and status,
- to create art,
- to find spiritual peace,
- to advance your career,
- to be a winner,
- to receive financial reward for your efforts,
- to continue learning and growing as a person,
- to remain close to your faith?
This week, the challenge is to
write a poem about a major driving force in your life. You might write about
something that drives you now, or you might consider writing about a past
motivation, where it lead you, what happened as a result, and how/if that
driving force changed over time. I suggest that you keep the poem to a maximum
of about 25 lines (less is fine); work on defining your “drive” and clarifying through
example. Use a figure of speech or two, and as always, let your poem develop
layers of meaning (don’t just tell a story, give the story more than its
obvious meaning).
Examples:
