Signs of Life: What Makes You Feel Alive?

What makes you feel alive in your life? What are those things that make your heart beat fast and let you know that you are actually alive? Those moments when we wake up from the monotonous parts of our day and breathe a little deeper knowing that this is our life and we only get to live each day once are the moments that really count. There is a big difference between playing the game of life to win and playing it not to lose.

For me, simple things in life make me feel alive. I don’t have to sit in the front row of a rock concert, go bungee jumping or skydive out of an airplane to feel alive. How about you?

I believe that feeling alive is tied to inspiration. If we can find a way to appreciate the simple things in life, we will open up our ability to feel inspired all the time; at least that is what I have experienced. Here are ten things that make me feel alive…

Ride my bike
Step in the ocean
Gaze at a full moon
Spend time in nature
Bake cookies with my son
Give a speech at a conference
Do something to help another person
Step out of my comfort zone and get scared
Travel to a new place where I’ve never been before
Eat a bug (ok, I’ve never actually done that, but I bet it would make me feel alive!)

The thing that makes me feel alive the most is when I see signs of life in our environment. They remind us that we are all here together, sharing the same space and breathing the same air. I think that is why I’m so drawn to graffiti artwork. The photographs below represent a series called “Signs of Life” by Candy Chang. As you see, the pictures were taken in different cities around the world. According to her website, Candy “believes one of the greatest things about life is spending time in public places with the people you love.” I couldn’t agree more!

New Orleans

Stockholm

New York City (Chinatown)

Helsinki

Turku

Barcelona

Istanbul

Header Image Credit: [Margaret M Stewart / Shutterstock]