We lied there on the grass
Thinking about life
How it went so well
With or without strife

We shared the same thoughts
We were inseparable
All of our years
Our fun, always on a double

Then you sat up
Looked me in the eyes
Smiling so sweetly
I can't break the ice

I smiled back and hoped
That this wouldn't end
But then you spoke up
"I'm glad that you're my best friend"

Music is a universal language that is understood through vibrations, moving notes and elegant sounds. But is that all we value? The peak of a song? What about the rests? The pure, empty silences in music? We perceive them as a missing piece, but in all honesty, that is where the beauty lies. Music is art painted on a canvas of silence, so in a world full of noise, the silences make the notes of a piece sound as alluring as they do. All we ever hear about is the fortes of life. Only about reaching a destination or peak of a song. But never the journey because it is unspoken about. The journey is the silence of a piece. We always focus on extravagant notes and are fooled to believe they are the most elegant, but in reality, the journey is always better than the destination, because you must have an absence, to truly appreciate a presence. And after you think about it, it is the intensity of a silence or a journey, that makes the presence or the destination beautiful.

I once remember talking with a friend of mine about her unbelievable  skill of music. Even though we were always friends, I could never let go how she was so much more talented than me... Jealousy overwhelmed me. That gave me drive to always strive to be better than her, but she always seemed to be on top. As we were talking, I asked...

"How are you so talented?"

She replied, "I practice for 2 hours everyday."

I was so astonished by how someone could be so dedicated, that I couldn't resist to ask why?

She responded with the biggest smile on her face saying, "I love it. It makes me happy, I don't know why, but I can't go a day without practicing. It would feel like someone took away air if they took away music from me."

I saw a genuine passion for music in her. She didn't just want to practice, she needed it.

After plenty late nights and endless hours, I asked myself, where has all my motivation gone? Where did my love go? I used to have a desire to play music, what happened?

What was once my love for music now became a jealous competition and rivalry to achieve perfection.

I shouldn't focus on what I can't do, but rather what I can do.
I shouldn't focus on what others can do, but what I can do.
I should focus on being the best I can be at what I love.

And that's the thing about passion, it doesn't come from jealous feelings. Passion isn't something you can force. Passion is finding something that gives you a burst of motivation to achieve greatness. And not for anyone else, but for yourself.

So no matter what you're doing in your life, whether it be music, art, math, or any aspect you can think of, make sure you are doing it for yourself and for your own happiness. Motivation doesn't come from those around you, it comes from your own genuine love and desire for something.