Fire

Your enthusiam, if it is consciuosly directed at something is like a magic wand, which renders magical the object being touched by it. It also has the power to enliven you as if by magic from one moment to the next. Enthusiam opens up your restricted personal perspective in so far as that it kindles the imagination and thus widens your view, making it clearer and enabling it to reach beyond your habitual range of sight. And since you are what you beleive this is very valuable. Directed enthusiams enable you to overcome barriers within the self and like a fire is able to melt down old mental, emotional and psychological restrictions. It can be compared to a kind of drug which temporarily transforms your personality into something more sparkling. Enthusiam is like an intelligent spark that sets you on fire and makes you glow and shine with a quality bigger than ordinary life. And like a burning torch it can be passed on to others that come into touch with the one enflamed. When you are entirely under the spell of enthusiam you become on twith the Eternal, ageless and time-less. Enthusiam is forever young and fresh and new. Therefore the individuals who cultivate their natural gift for enthusiasm of sheer life will never grow old in spirit even though their bodies may age and wither. They will partly remain like a young child until their physical death. And they will die loved and admired by the generations coming after them who felt inspired and comforted by seing that old age can also be a joyous and light-hearted affair and does not have to be a heavy drudge to be born in resignation, simply because ones body is reclining.
Young children are naturally enthusiastic about life which is why their charm is usually irresistible and enchanting to all who let them-selves be touched by it- somtime even despite them-selves. One could divide the grow-ups into two categories. Those who have them-selves lost their own spark of enthusiams and those who still posess it, even thoug they might bear it hidden beneath the surface. By watching them interact with very young one can distinguish between the two. The ones belonging to the first category will easily become tired and bored while playing with them, never losing their sense of time because their discriminating Ego-Minds are remaining active and in charge all the time, ready to ridicule and judge the harmless children's game. Whereas the ones of the second category will forget all but what they are currently doing, not needing to play-act in order to be part of the childish games. Of course, they still remain responsible adults but this fact does not hinder them from being enthusiastic all the same.
Enthusiasm renders you momentarily light-hearted and thoughtless of your-self and therefore individuals who take them-selves too seriously will find it almost impossible to be touched by it.
But like everything in this world of duality also enthusiasm can have a negative aspect to it. It can not only bust your powers and energies but also deplete them. The latter occurs if when it is not focussed. Or rather: wrongly focussed. How so? Now this is very difficult to explain in words. I will try it by way of giving you two examples. First the rightly focussed: Individuals of an equilibrated personality and mind, aware of the hight qualities of the heart and with a sense of purpose and direction in life. Their enthusiasm naturally occuring also over small things in life, forever re-newing it-self, generally not materialy oriented and lightening up the eyes when being felt. Enthusiasm guiding them trough life, always showing them the way. The second one being those of a superficial nature, not mindful of others nor of Mother Nature. Their enthusiasm, too, only existing on the surface and exclusively living in the Mind and never the heart which is why the eyes remain dead and lifeless even in aparent joy and rapture about something. Their enthusiasm not bringing them closer to them-selves and actual life but even further away and deeper into the maze of illusions.
And there is even a third category. Those who are in between and unable to differentiate for themselves between the real and the unreal enthusiasm. Therefore being tossed hither and thither and often feeling them-selves without sense of direction. Like a sailing boat on a choppy sea with a compass on board that only seldom functions properly.