vision as your magic fire in a jar

 
 

🗺️ a continuation of writings on world-building.
🌸 this a new series on growing a vision.

think of your vision as your magic fire in a jar.

perhaps there was a great deal of struggle to kindle this fire. perhaps you had to turn your back on the pre-set paths paved before you, tear yourself away from running the obstacle course of other people’s notions of “success.”

perhaps you had to search long and hard within yourself — before stumbling upon that feeling: that there is something more that my soul craves, something I’m meant to do, some purpose to this life beyond what’s visible, right in front of me, something greater I’m meant to fight for, run towards, or manifest in the world.

it doesn’t matter if you’re unsure, what, exactly, your vision is.

it can feel foggy, nebulous, ever-changing — and it can still make its presence known within you as a flame. when you’ve lost your way, you can turn to this small fire as a source of warmth, and comfort, and solidity — with a knowing that this flame, at least, belongs solely to you. even in its most quiet, subdued state, your fire is a light that can and will guide your way.

months ago, I wrote a post about inner fire, called you must be your own flame.

yes, and — you can put your flame into a jar.

let me explain why.

the power of containment

I don’t know how many times I’ve written down my visions on a piece of paper, or google doc, or journal. I have so many visions for my life, business, and art that they all feel muddled within me, and I’m left with a restless energy, pulled in a gazillion different directions. in previous years, I’d fall into holes of moodiness and overwhelm.

this act of metaphorically putting my visions in a jar — and looking at them — helps me clarify, and deliberately relate to them.

a truth that I come back to, again and again, is this:


if you want something to grow, you must first make space for it.

create containers in your life to hold it.

paradoxically, before something can expand, you must first clarify its boundaries — a sense of distinction, that is, where it begins and where it ends. a sense of its own existence in space, even if it’s psychic space.

when you put your vision in a jar, you’re able to look at it as a living entity which is separate from you; which has an energy distinct from yours. you’re able to tend to it, water it, and grow it, over time. you’re able to ask it what it needs from you — to burn brighter and greater.

you’re able to listen to what it wants, instead of imposing your ego needs and willpower on it. you’re able to surrender to it — almost as a spirit which wants to move through you. everything you do becomes in service of the vision. your being becomes a channel for a greater creative force to move through you.

Journaling Questions

  • What’s the vision (or visions) that are currently living within you?

  • Imagine putting them in a jar. Sense into them. What do they ask of you?

  • What would you do if you allowed this vision to guide your way?

  • What’s the next step?

💌 I write a weekly newsletter on creative process & digital ecosystems called guide.notes. I also have a weekly podcast, botanical studies.

 
 
growing a businessKening Zhuvisions, world-building