My first (and I hope, only) visit to Pittsburgh, PA, USA; my park-path crossed that of two white men, one with a clipboard, the other with an at-home-creator tripod in-hand. They were decidedly harmless enough. My best friend and I consented to their interview and understood their creative mission: anchor the education of America’s youth in each child’s unique purpose. Their claim: to reprogram the system, triangulate each child’s unique purpose by the questions, What are you passionate about? What are you good at? and What does the world need?

So, I ask myself again now, to design the dream job cover letter,

What are you passionate about? Among other abstractions, I am passionate about beauty and specifically its power to haunt humans into affecting change. Despite her capacity for evil, one human’s memory of a stranger sweeping jacaranda petals from palace grounds in Morocco, the inimitable sound of church bells or taste of their mom’s funeral potatoes give her reason to do good. I am fascinated by how her experience of beauty shapes a buyer’s decisions.

What are you good at? Generally, I consider myself good at communication. The part of communication that is listening and the part that is eye contact and the part that is writing manifest best in me as poems about leopards in trees. I think great, sales-worthy communication cannot happen without deep listening, clear eye contact, and focused writing.

What does the world need? On the day in Pittsburgh and still now, I balk at this. “Who am I to say what the world needs?” I retorted then. To be clear, I want this job for entirely selfish reasons. You see, I cannot know my purpose without you. This third corner of the triangle I cannot know without ________. At the risk of pandering to my audience, I’ll write here that saving the world is and long has been your corner of my triangle of purpose. You do it humbly. You do it sustainably – and by sustainable, I mean, with pace. And by with pace, I mean, with patience. Over time, I mean.

To be committed to longevity is what the world needs. To be committed to stewardship and community and something outside the singular mind busying itself with questions like, “what am I passionate about?” or “what am I good at?”

I think the world needs a safe place to rest. The world maybe needs _________ to tell the world what the world needs. – someone to make it all feel easy and taken care of. I would delight in the opportunity to dedicate time to witness, hear, and create the beautiful stories of _______’s portfolio, people, and purpose.

I cannot believe I started this letter in Pittsburgh. I really hope I’ve made no typos. Now is not the time for typos.

Today,

What does the world need?

Yin yoga