Inspiration Whores

Do you ever feel like barfing when someone posts and "inspirational quote" on Facebook? Why is this still a thing? Haven't people realized that, just because they need to read some "inspirational" words written by some random famous person to make themselves feel better, doesn't mean that the rest of us want to read them too? What is this terrible trend of which we have all become victims?

"Just because the past didn't turn out like you wanted it to, doesn't mean your future can't be better than you've ever imagined."

"Whatever you decide to do, make sure it makes you happy."

"Believe you can, and you're halfway there."

I have a hard time not commenting, "DUH." Of course we always try to do things that make us happy. Why would we try to do things that make us upset or depressed? Of COURSE we keep the hope that the future can be better... it can also be worse, especially if you continue to post things like this. And OF COURSE thinking about doing something preludes actually doing it! All of these statements seem so obvious to me that they don't come anywhere near true inspiration. It seems that some people in this age have become what I would like to call "inspiration whores," posting so much meaningful crap that it all cancels out to become white noise.

I am all about being inspired, everyone loves the feeling of thinking, "Whoa, my mind is blown." But it is the scarcity of these moments that really makes them so impactful. I was inspired when I saw the Alhambra in Granada for the first time. I was inspired when I was out on the ocean on a catamaran while the sun was setting over Oah'u. I am inspired when I see people being kind for no reason except kindness, fathers dancing with their children at the fair, and a goal scored for my team at a soccer game. I am inspired by the tears shed every time I get to hand an immigrant their work authorization card after a lifetime of living in the shadows. I know what inspiration is and I do not need to read posts of obvious statements and overly-used celebrity phrases get me there. If that is really what we need to feel inspired, we must have a severe lack of real life inspiration, and that's just sad.

Feeling inspired makes you want to be a better person, and many of these quotes seem to address how exactly to go about being a better version of yourself. This is really easy. I can give you three steps on how to be a better person and you won't ever need to read an inspirational quote again.

1. Don't be an asshole. Be nice.
2. Don't be dramatic. Be positive.
3. Do the best you can, and don't freak out when things go wrong. You'll be fine. Move on and try again.

One evening about a year ago, Claire and I were so annoyed by this virtual bombardment of encouraging images, we decided to create our own inspirational quotes, on beautiful inspirational backgrounds, images that we knew would lift sad people up and make happy people nod in appreciation. And here they are. We hope that you, too, will be filled with a newfound hope for the future and for our world in general.

Advice to live by. You're welcome.