The Great Life…According to Mark Cigos

I was on the phone tonight with a very good friend of mine. The kind of friend who pushes me relentlessly. He challenges and confronts me, and at times, more than I’d like to admit, he irks the bloody hell out of me.

But what a great friend he is.

He’s much like me in many ways. Perhaps that’s why we butt heads so often.

But it’s never malicious, condescending or counterproductive fire he spits out. It’s always fire of passion and vision. He puts me in my place when I need it most, and expects the very same from me when he trots out of line.

As the conversation came to what I thought was the end, he asked me one thought provoking question that truly took me off guard, and away from the things I was currently bitching about.

What are the things that matter to you Mark?

And then he kind of cut the conversation real short, as if on purpose, moving me to think pretty damn deep as he abruptly let me go.

Thanks asshole.

Kidding.

His closing words propelled me to dig deep, sit back in my comfy chair at my home office desk and start typing away on my trusty ol’ laptop.

Here goes. The things that matter to me, Part 1:

 

• My health – cause without it, what do I have? Without an energetic, healthy and vibrant me, I would not be able to do the things I envision in my life and the life of others. I would be a shade of what and who I am and will be, without the greatest asset we’re given – our health. Cherish it with all you’ve got, improve and nurture it relentlessly day in day out.

 

• My family – we are all products of how we are raised (at least the very great majority of us are), how we are loved and how we continue to build on those relationships with the closest people in our lives. Our family is our makeup. They support us, they push, they unconditionally love us. Without that vital lifeline, life sometimes feels like it’s on the line.  

 

• My friends – some whom I will consider family, that’s how tight we are. They say you should only be able to count your best friends on one hand. I’ve tried for years to count them on two, never works. There are best friends, friends and acquaintances. We’re all loaded with acquaintances, sometimes have an abundance of friends, but only one hand should hold five spots or less for those who would do almost anything for you, and along the journey of life, push you to be the person they know you can become. That’s a real friend. A best friend.

 

• Breezes – that little uplifting breeze going by may just be the sweetest thing since that first kiss way back when. Somehow with a breeze, especially an unsuspecting one, it always feels like the very first time. Refreshing, exhilarating, and so damn welcomed.

 

• Music – it’s the energy drink of life. Flip on the iPod, pop in a CD, flick on the radio. Nothing stirs my soul like music. I drive to it, I workout to it, I write to it right now. U2, Kanye, Tiesto, Elton – music that drives the mind and soul upwards.

 

• Beaches – the ocean is my greatest obsession. One that on a daily basis I do not live close by to, nor frequent more than perhaps a handful of times per year. But when I’m in its presence, I’m mesmerized, obsessed, truly convinced it has me captivated for a reason. It’s something I’ve loved since just a child. Something I know I will one day be very, very close to.

 

• Writing – this list has no order. If it did, writing would be higher up. Writing is a funny thing with me. I love it more than any other creative output I can produce. Yet at the same time, I’m confused about what I should do with it. Write all time and forget about everything else? Or write when I REALLY feel it, pumping out words that have substance and meaning to me, showcasing to those who encounter the work something real and raw and from my core. Writing matters SO MUCH to me, but at the same time, it’s that odd thing in life you just can’t seem to channel out the way you want. The good news, I’ll never really ever stop writing.

 

• Design – Apple/iPods, that’s design. That’s also just one example. I’m a marketing guy, a sucker for all things remarkably packaged and promoted. Design is everything from the latest pair of Oakley shades to the strategically placed tattoos on Megan Fox’s body. Damn. Design is not just fancy curtains in a seaside mansion. It’s beauty and distinctiveness at every turn we turn.

 

• My body – cause it’s mine, I’ve only got one, I’ll never have another. I could classify this right up there in the health category, but what I want to make here is a strong point. My body matters to me immensely. Your body is your vehicle for life. Why is it that the fat rich guy is driving a Bentley? Wouldn’t it make much more sense if he was rich and driving a Toyota Yaris while rockin’ a six pack and illegal guns for arms? Doesn’t make sense? Probably not. The point I’m trying to get across here is simple. Work hard, make money, drive whatever car fancies you, but please oh please, make and take the time to care for your temple, your body. Fancy clothes and fast cars mean nothing if your body rots from the inside out while you sport Prada in a Jaguar.

 

• Food – healthy food. Fresh food. Good-for-me food. This is what we are. We are what we eat? Never ever more true than right now. If lifting weights and running half marathons aint your thing, don’t sweat it. Eat right, stay tight, live life light.