Neon Lights

I can' t seem to get away from the fact that everywhere I go I see neon lights. From the fluorescent Open sign that blinks in my favorite coffee shop to the people crossing sign I run by daily, I cannot help to look at these snippits of color as my eyes are drawn to it like children to candy. Yet, when it first struck me I was cooking my vegetable of the month, broccoli. You see as I tore each tiny tree of broccoli into the pan I observed how bland and dull the stem appeared to me almost like the color of mint ice cream. The foliage of the tree,while full of color, only had a hue that resembled algae;the kind that sits on the bottom of the lakes and slithers between your toes. Yet, within a matter of minutes and a rolling boil later my dinner delicacy has been transformed into a gorgeous array of color. I stare down at the pan and I am mesmerized by what I see. The stem now rejuvenated with life is the color of newly sprouting grass in the spring. The heads of my delicious dinner glimmer in my eyes like the Emerald City must have appeared to Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz. While you might think I am a little on the obsessive side with my dinner delicacies, it's not just the small things, but the more I look around the more I see the massive display of color that engulfs me. Perhaps, it is the fact that the winter can be so dismal and grey which allows any color to have neon potential, but I like to believe that it is just me seeing the world in a different light.

The truth of the matter is that it isn't just the innate objects that are having this hypnotic effect on me, but it also resonates from the people I associate with everyday. Perhaps you have experienced it too, there are some people who have this glowing aura that is irresistible. I mean everything about these people in my life shouts joy, beauty, and light and I am instantly drawn to them. Their vibrancy for life is something that I can only hope to emanate in my own life. All of these things have caused me to start thinking about what my aura says about me?

I will admit I am sure that over the last couple of weeks my aura has been flickering like a candle on a windy day. I am such a product of my environment. The constant grind of medical school has the capability of pulverizing me down to no more that mere crumbles of my normal self. Yet, these people who I am constantly enchanted with have this zeal for life through all of its ups and down. They resonate this neon light effect from their actions to the smile of their pearly whites. In my eyes they are extremists, like 1980's neon pink leotards. They know what it means to feel and live deeply. In a world that encourages us to be like the norm it is difficult and sometimes discouraged to feel and express the gamut of emotions we experience. Yet, what I have learned is that being able to feel deeply, empathize, and delight in the joys of others is one of the most basic and illuminatingly brilliant displays of life that will require those around you to break out there sunglasses.

Thus this week on your frigid walks around town, try to see the color that surrounds you and the things that truly glimmer in your eyes. Be mindful of the people in your life who are not afraid to live deeply and who have an aura that shines brighter than a Christmas tree. I encourage you to be rejuvenated and to illuminate to others your zest for life because lets be honest, we all are just chameleons deep down who are dying to show our true colors.