L.I.F.E. -- Love It For-Ever

An exploration & interpretation of “The Holstee Manifesto”

Recently I ran across this poster (The Holstee Manifesto, www.holstee.com) on the back of a friend’s bathroom door. Yeah, that’s right. The bathroom door. Every time you use this room in her house, you are contemplating, well, the bigger picture. The minute I read it, I was captivated. I slowly read each sentence, periodically shouting, “Yes!” or “So true!” My friend, who was in the kitchen, said, “You okay in there?”

I was staying with her for a few days in Santa Barbara, surrounded by beautiful mountains and the bluest Pacific waters. Each day, the poster’s concepts wafted through my mind like the breezes I felt during my early morning walks. It was as if those words were written directly for me.

One thing was certain: that poster made me think. A lot. I started wondering how each sentence applied in my life, or didn’t. I wondered if I could improve the quality of my life by actually living the words every day. Then I wondered if I could live those words every day. I studied each concept to see which ones felt more important or urgent. And I noticed the sentences that stung — the ones I had not been so good at. The ones I needed to work on.

Yes, I thought, these words are potent pointers to the things we value most. The things that make us feel successful in our lives. Though our dreams and desires are as individual as we are, we all want to have a life we love. We all want to wake up every morning excited about the day ahead, delighted to be doing what we are doing. We want to enjoy our lives rather than just survive them.

One day, the idea dropped in to highlight each sentence by writing about its meaning and message individually and how we can apply it to our daily lives. I liken it to deep sea diving for the soul, as we move forward both as individuals and as people sharing the same earth. In upcoming posts, I’ll share experiences from my own life and invite the reader to share via comments any important insights gleaned from these musings. I hope you join me on this journey of self-discovery.