Inspiration                       English

		In English, inspiration refers to a feeling of emotional energy and enthusiasm. The sources of the feeling, be it nature, art, solitude, another person, or the gods, can be called an inspiration. Interestingly enough, something created from this feeling, such as, a business or work of art, is also called an inspiration.
Edwin Rutsch Inspiration Point, Yosemite, California.
The word inspiration comes to English from the French word, inspire, whose origin has been traced back to the Latin words in and spirare (breathe), or in other words, to breathe into. The Latin root word spirare forms the base of other English words, such as; aspire (rough or audible breathing), conspire (breathe together), expire (breathe out), perspire (breathe through), transpire (breathe across) and spirit (breath of life).
More than twenty-five locations, called Inspiration Point, dot the United States. These places located in nature have overwhelmingly beautiful views of the surrounding areas. Lafayette Bunnell, one of the first non-Indians to see Yosemite Valley from Inspiration Point said, "The grandeur of the scene was but softened by the haze that hung over the valley, light as gossamer, and by the clouds which partially dimmed the higher cliffs and mountains. This obscurity of vision but increased the awe with which I beheld it, and as I looked, a peculiar exalted sensation seemed to fill my whole being, and I found my eyes in tears with emotion."			Yosemite Valley From Inspiration Point, Ansel Adams
A drawing of my first memory of Inspiration	While it didn’t bring me to tears, my first memory of feeling inspired was from reading adventure books like Call of the Wild, by Jack London and a book about some guys that drove a Land Rover around the world. This inspired me to want to travel and seek adventure. After High School, I started my adventures by backpacking in the California, Sierra Nevada mountains through Yosemite Valley and then continued on with ten years of travels around the world.

Interview Question

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Lucia Zambrini;  "Why did you choose to begin your humanity quest with the inspiration theme?"

Edwin:   That's a good question..  I had been working in the computer field and wanted to do something that had a more humanistic aspect to it. Something more fulfilling. Computers and technology do not interest me as they once did.  I was inspired by my friend Harold who I had spent a lot of time traveling around the world with. He always had a theme he was working on. He would talk about it, ask people about it, think about it, etc. (I drew and wrote about it on the picture.)

Taking a spiritual theme and exploring it in depth seemed to me like a good way to learn and grow. I was looking for a theme that had some personal meaning to me and inspiration came up. I don’t recall the actual moment that it came up. I had been working previously on the theme of trust, but that did not interest me any longer. Then I thought of self-trust, since I'd like to trust my feelings and inner self more.. Ralf Waldo Emerson talks about this theme a bunch. But it's not an easy theme to work with.. It's not a common enough term to be easily understood. Finding art on the topic is also quite difficult.

I felt uninspired. What could I explore? I really needed some inspiration. That's it,, explore inspiration and I may find what inspires me. I'd sure love to feel inspired every day. I've done small projects where I felt inspired and it sure was fun. That's the feeling I wanted to experience.

So now, I am basically looking for what inspires me. I am still looking.. Every day I find a few more clues.

Somebody told me, You can’t find inspiration by searching for it?  or "...inspiration never arrived when you were searching for it." Lisa Alther.  If they're correct that would negate my path.

But then again, some people say, "Find your inspiration and hone in on it." Susan Longacre

I'm back from my trip to the mountains, June 22, 2002. It was nice to do some hiking and get some exercise as well as see the beauty in nature. Also I met many other people who were hiking in the area. I got the inspiration of solitude, nature and society.  A couple of times we camped where there were other people and I enjoyed talking with them at breakfast and at dinner around the camp fire. Most of the time we were off on our own however.

Nature
"The richness I achieve comes from nature, the source of my inspiration". ~ Claude Monet

Solitude
"One can be instructed in society, one is inspired only in solitude." Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Society
"The person who tries to live alone will not succeed as a human being. His heart withers if it does not answer another heart. His mind shrinks away if he hears only the echoes of his own thoughts and finds no other inspiration." Pearl Sydenstricker Buck

There seems to be something about moving from one of these states to another that brings energy.. Going from being around people and civilization, then to nature and solitude, and then back again to civilization.