As the owner of a dance studio, I have the opportunity to watch dancers surprise me, every day. One of my most memorable moments surfaced this past dance season when a dancer won a Judges’ Award. The Emcee inquired of the young dancer: “What inspires you when you choreograph?” After five good seconds, the dancer responded, “Everything…?...”

After the audience, along with the Emcee and the dancer, had a quick laugh, I began thinking, How would I have answered this question?

1. Pandora: I am, constantly, amazed at the amount of art and technical skill, that is showcased by Pandora. Elvis to Taylor Swift to Bach to Drake, amazed.
2. Wind: The wind is like love; you cannot see it, but you can feel it, and it, continually, moves you and creeps your skin with chills.
3. Chocolate: Because, who is not inspired by chocolate?
4. SIlence: I am, often, startled by the silence, not by the chatter. It is far more rare.
5. Grey’s Anatomy: McDreamy. McSteamy. McEverything. McInspiresMe.
6. Sweat: It seems to cleanse the places a shower cannot.
7. Words: 26 letters wrote Twilight, The Creative Habit, To Kill a Mockingbird, and The Great Gatsby. 26 letters.
8. Dreams: You cannot dream about something that you have not seen, waking. Yet, when we dream, it all seems so foreign.
9. Laughter: Have you ever notice how odd of a sound laughter is, and yet, it is like music, simultaneously?
10. Martha Graham: While I dislike her choreography, there is inspiration in disconnect.
11. Friends: This 1990s sitcom rumbled in the background of my childhood. I am pretty sure my first words were, “How you doin’?”
12. Disney World: This truly is the Happiest Place on Earth. Nothing is cheerier than Cinderella, Mickey Mouse, and Peter Pan all in one location.
13. Anatomy: Muscle, bones, nerves… Oh, my!
14. Hillary Clinton: My great-grandmother wrote her name on to every ballot she cast. Now, I may actually have the opportunity to vote for her, officially, on the 2016 presidential ballot.
15. Failure: You win, or you learn.
16. Him: We all have our “him.” (Or, “her.”)
17. Nyle DiMarco: A man, who is deaf, deservingly won Dancing With The Stars, this past season. I remember, continually, repeating: “The man cannot even hear the music.”
18. Flying: Our arms root in our backs, where our wings would be. Dance from your back.
19. Sleep: We are unconscious an average of one third of our lives.
20. New York City: No, that is not a fairytale. It is New York City.
21. Glitter: Who is not inspired by glitter? You, in the back? You can kindly exit this article, now.
22. Smiles: Everyone smiles in the same language.
23. Momma: She made me. That is all the inspiration I need.
24. Exercise: I will always push my body past its limits; it is there that I find something new.
25. Diet Coke: Is it killing me, slowly? Probably. Am I easily awake at 3:30am, writing this article? Yes. That is either magic, or magic, people.

This quick, minute list ran through my head in five seconds. I conclude that my answer would, also, be “Everything.” I join the audience laughter and applause, and again, beam with joy at the surprise of inspiration.