DAY EIGHT. FIRE.

The word of the day is fire. Please, let us be simple I last took English as a subject seven years ago.

Fire is a word that has origins in Gaelic, German and other similar languages. What struck me is that it has two forms of meaning. One form is for fire as an inanimate substance and the other is for it as an animate force. The first is the fire we cook dinner with that inspired the word to be used for the action of discharging a gun or something. The second one I gather is where fire is the awakening, passionate force that inspires songs, actions and Avatars.

I like the word fire. It is as dangerous as it is arousing. Things happen where fire exists. Fire changes things. When you are fired, you lose your job and become unemployed. When someone is on fire for you they want you so much they can’t keep still. My only problem with fire is that it is the most destructive force if not handled well, especially in the wrong hands. The same fire that can cook you dinner can burn your house down.

I am on fire for a lot of things. I literally glow when I am on fire. Live music sets me on fire. Great literature burns me up. Love is absolutely sizzling. Hard work, powerful life changing conversations and seeing things pay off puts fire in my bones. I get hot when things blow my mind or when things fall into place. It is my nature to savour the flames. I don’t even dare enter relationships of any sort unless there is a flicker of a flame.

Notice how fireworks are so bright, flamboyant and glorious but they never make you warm? Or how fireplaces are dusty, they crackle and have ash and wood but they make you feel the warmth that you need in that moment. It is possible to be in contact with fire and still stay cold. Sometimes you need a different kind of fire for different points of life. A candle is enough to light a path but it isn’t enough to keep you warm in the winter.

I burn hot, really hot. I juggle all my activities with same intensity, I feel things deeply, I overthink, I commit, I apply myself and I go all the way once my mind is set. Sometimes I have to shrink myself because I burn too hot. I used to like big fires, bonfire kind of affairs, businesses, achievements and pursuits because I thought the only thing that matches fire is fire. But as I grow older I have become weary of licking my accidental burns of different degrees. I have matured beyond playing with fire and hoping not to get burnt. It was fun to pretend I was a fire eater and flame juggler but I am not. I have come to enjoy the steady hearth that can warm, cook dinner and occasionally light up some fireworks. It is constant, it is not dull and it’s only dangerous when I dare it. The steady flame is the one that renews and keeps another burning.

May you find a fire that celebrates your own, that marvels at your colour, complexity and heat because your fire is beautiful. That doesn’t try to stifle you and makes room to contain you. May the world recognise your fire and in turn be encouraged to light up their own. May your fire never burn out or burn you. May your fire warm you, challenge you and keep you going even when you feel like a lone flame. Above all may you find a fire that completely matches your own.