AtQ – What Makes Your Face Light Up?

Exploring Powerful Questions

In this week’s Talking Note I explored the idea of falling in love. That profound event or series of events that set a particular kind of transformation in motion. Love is a profound power. It is not to be manipulated, but should be inquired about. Especially with the understanding that our loves may be disordered, inquiry as to how our loves may be ordered is important. Of all the tell-tale signs, there is one that I can hold on to that tells me where my loves are. When I talk about something or someone I love, my face lights up. I can feel it. I’ve seen it in others, too. And so, we come to our question:

What makes your face light up?

In coaching sessions with clients, one of the things I track, and make a point of reflecting when I see it, are the moments my client’s face light up. Many aren’t aware of the shift, so I point it out.

This is what it feels like for me: My body relaxes and feels energized at the same time. I sense my eyes widen, and my face rests with a smile. As I’m talking it feels like I’m sharing a dream that I’m experiencing in realtime with my eyes open. Whatever I’m sharing is so real to me that there is a physical shift in me towards that thing – I feel like I’m there even as I share it. And it is very good.

Having our faces light up is a function of being inspired. Look at two people who love one another and you might find that they look at each other differently than they look at the rest of the world. Having our faces light up is bearing witness to the world around us that we are in love with something or someone. That love is pervasive, but sometimes it is hard to be aware of. Having someone you’re willing to share things with can be an amazing help to find out what makes you light up. Consider this practice: