Where will you leave your fingerprint?

If we look at our life and our most meaningful relationships, we are often pulled by forces not in line with our true values. The external and internal clutter makes us become reactionary. We then generally behave in a way that soothes the emotions of the moment and detract us from following our true path.

When we start simplifying the ‘toxic’ elements of our life, we can begin to see our true passions and drivers. Some would describe this as ‘your calling’ or passion. However, I personally don’t believe you can ever have one – why not multiple? As humans we are naturally born curious. So why not satisfy these curiosities and allow ourselves to explore? Imagine the possibilities.

A good way to start is to ask yourself what would you want to be known for in your life and how would you like to be remembered.

Now seems like a good time to welcome our guest contributor ErinMarie who has wrote an inspiring piece on how you may want to leave your mark in the world. It doesn’t have to be significant, it just needs to be you. Even the simplest of things can make an impact.

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Where will you leave your fingerprint?

By ErinMarie Reiter

I love theatre, art, seeing things that are crafted by people so insanely talented that they can evoke feelings and reactions from a stroke of a brush or a well-timed word. In a world where instant fame for taking a selfie seems to be the currency of the day, I love the idea of something that is crafted, quality, and evocative; that there is something that is both fleeting and makes a long lasting impact. After all, eventually the show ends or the museum closes. Then whatever you have experienced lives on in you.

I live in San Diego, and many years ago we had an exhibit that came to our Museum of Art (Lovely museum, please check it and Balboa Park out if you are ever in our fair city). This exhibit was called “Saint Peter and the Vatican: The Legacy of the Popes.” In it were showcased more than 350 objects from art, clothing, jewellery, and more. But of everything there, amongst all of the splendour, the marble, the fabric and the jewels, one thing stood out to me.

Bernini was an extraordinary artist and sculptor. When he worked he would make clay miniatures of what he was planning on the large scale. (He may sound familiar; he helped Rome acquire some of its décor and is featured quite heavily in Dan Brown’s books.) While the statues, fountains, and life size sculptures in marble and bronze are breathtaking, it took teams of people to help him achieve his vision. But the clay models he made, those were intimately made solely of Bernini’s skill and passion.

In this exhibit, they had a miniature that he had made and there, in the middle of the back, was a very clear and easily recognizable fingerprint.

Bernini’s fingerprint from hundreds of years ago.

I could not stop starting at this fingerprint. It made me realize that I suddenly felt connected to this artist in a very real, human way.

With this small visual cue, he was no longer just this genius from another time – he was someone who cared enough, and felt compelled enough, to bring beauty into this world. Here was something that, when he created it, he may never have thought would see the light of day. Let alone make it halfway around the world. Bernini could not have known that this fingerprint in this clay statue would impact someone from a time, country, and society that would seem alien to him. Yet of all of his works that I have seen, this one has stuck with me.

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What has stuck with me is this:

Where do I want to leave my fingerprints? It is a conscious choice you make every day. What you do, no matter how small it may seem at the time, leaves an impact. What do you love and want to leave behind?
It is not in the grand gestures and decisions that your life is measured by. It is in the everyday moments, the opportunity to be nice to someone, to smile, to be passionate about something. Not for any monetary gain, or for fame, but because you feel compelled to leave beauty in the world.