Meeting The Montreux Pinguin

Do you believe that creativity comes from within yourself - or that it emerges from outside of you?

Maybe it is both. Maybe we are like a radio that decodes signals and when the right wave length hits we can transform it into something that may seem new to others, but that has actually been there before already.

Michaelangelo once said:

Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it.

I find that this idea really applies to everything, not just blocks of stones. Every life, every situation, every place has an intrinsic beauty in it and it is the task for us to discover it.

Often such "in-sights" happen out of the moment.

For example, I discovered a wonderful pinguin statue in Montreux, while strolling along the river side. Inspired by his beauty, simplicity and elegance I asked my girlfriend to take this picture.

I felt drawn to mirror the pinguin and to create a new situation together with him. But there was very little of my doing. The whole thing was already contained in the shape of the pinguin. I simply acted on what spoke to me.

We can find a million things within this statue, if we care enough to see them. You can see things in the pinguin that I am not able to see. And vice versa.

A few months later I was there again. Naturally, I asked my girlfriend to take a second picture.

Admittedly, I look far less beautiful, simple and elegant than the pinguin. But hey, you can only get better if you aim high!

The pinguin is still much more beautiful, simple and elegant than I will ever be. But that's OK. Because life is not a competition.

More important in life is to be inspired and to create something beautiful with others.

Act on your inspirations! There is something you can see within things that others cannot. Maybe you can see it in an object, a person or something else.

Make it a habit to express what speaks to you.

If you want to see the pinguin for yourself, he may still be in Montreux. Here it is on the map: