What Does It Mean For a Person to SPARKLE?
"The intense longing to go beyond our circumstances is in all of us. That’s why we love to gaze at the starry night sky with its many stars sparkling with varying intensity - and dream of what could be..."
This quote is from the beginning of my chapter "The Last Sparkle" in the new, bestselling book: "Business Life Universe" pt. 7, co-authored by Corey Poirier and Randy Spelling. (to be published in Sept. 2022).
Most people intuitively understand the meaning of the word sparkle.
My definition of SPARKLE is that it is something beautiful, a spark of life energy that can be seen in the eyes of people that have successfully overcome hardship and despair and reached a new understanding of life. Sparkly people are those who are living their best life, full of meaning and purpose.
In this article, I want to go a bit deeper in examining what it means for a person to SPARKLE.
Who is this "sparkly person"? Can others see whether a person sparkles or not?
How do you become sparkly or start sparkling when you may have lost your sparkle or it is just not shining brightly?
Are people who sparkle happier than those who don't? (And what do you call a person who doesn't sparkle - yet?
And what does is the "born to sparkle" meaning?
Not all of us are born into circumstances that make life easy, and life's happenings often throw us off our paths.
My stories around #Sparkles are based on the (fictional) journey of a woman (I called her "Harried Harriette") to a better life.
Her quest is to rise up from fear, sadness and despair to living her best life, recovering the sparkle in her eyes and getting the spring in her step back.
I have depicted her 7-Step journey of rising up from an abusive childhood and marriage to SPARKLE in our very imperfect movie of life here.
The Meaning And Definition Of SPARKLE
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the verb "sparkle" means: one of these things (or all of them):
- to throw out sparks
- to give off or reflect bright moving points of light
- to perform brilliantly
- EFFERVESCE (wine that sparkles)
- to become lively or animated: (the dialogue sparkles with witeyes, sparkling with anger)
- to cause to glitter or shine
the noun "SPARKLE" can mean:
- a little spark : SCINTILLATION
- the quality of sparkling
- ANIMATION, LIVELINESS
- the quality or state of being effervescent
Vocabulary.com describes “sparkly” as:
The adjective sparkly is useful for describing an object that glints with light, like a disco ball, or a person whose personality is equally bright and bubbly.
A little girl's glittery shoes are sparkly, and so is sunlight flashing on the surface of a lake. When people are described as sparkly, it's usually because they are vivacious and enthusiastic, the life of the party. The word sparkly was first used in the 1920s, from sparkle, which in turn comes from spark. The origin isn't known for sure, but it may be rooted in the Old Norse word sparkr, "sprightly."
Definitions:
- having brief brilliant points or flashes of light: “a dress with sparkly sequins”,
- emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
or
- marked by high spirits or excitement: “a row of sparkly cheerleaders”
- lively, full of life and energy
Did you notice one thing:
To be a sparkly person, you don't need to sparkle brightly yourself, but it is just as valuable to reflect other people's light!
(which may mean in the online world to share sparkly content...)
Can others see whether you SPARKLE or not?
I believe they can, but only if…
- they pay attention
- they have some degree of understanding and intuition
- and you make it possible for them to see your sparkle
How Do You Notice Whether others SPARKLE ?
This can be hard. Best is to train yourself to pay attention to the features and habits true SPARKLES display. (see below)
Generally speaking, a person who sparkles will bE:
- More attractive to others (who have no idea why that may be)
- More content and happy
- Less fearful and afraid
- Less self-absorbed
- Less angry and irritable
- Less needy
- More optimistic
- More outgoing
- More helpful to others
- More kind and caring
- More self-reliant
- More courageous without being reckless
A person who sparkles will DO all this:
- Speak their truth with kindness and compassion
- Respect others, their time and energy
- Expect others to respect their time and energy
- Listen carefully and without prejudice
- Be thoughtful in their responses
- Cut ties to people who are “energy vampires”
- Take bold action towards their purpose and passion
- Ask for help when something comes up
How A person who sparkles will FEEL:
- Loved
- Loving
- Helpful
- Empowered
- Content
- Driven and purposeful
- The necessity to express themselves and share their gifts freely
- Confident to ask for – and receive money in return for services
- Worthy
- Needed
- Appreciated
What does the Term " Born to Sparkle" Mean?
The phrase “born to sparkle” isn’t a technical or clinical term.
Born to Sparkle meaning is a meaning‑rich metaphor that I used repeatedly across my own writing and programs about recovering, expressing, and living one’s true aliveness.
Grounded in that context, here’s a clear, human explanation.
What “born to sparkle” really means
To be “born to sparkle” means that each person comes into the world with an innate capacity for vitality, curiosity, meaning, and light—before life dulls it.
In my work, sparkle is not superficial cheerfulness or performance. It points to something deeper and more durable:
1. An original aliveness
Your writing describes sparkle as something visible even in infancy—“the sparkle in the eyes”—before conditioning, fear, trauma, or exhaustion take hold.
To be born to sparkle is to be born with an intact sense of self and possibility. [USE- jan 1...Books etc | Word]
2. A natural state, not an achievement
Across From Harried Harriette to Sparkling Suzie and related work, sparkle is something that can be lost and recovered, not earned or manufactured.
This implies that sparkle is: [DRC-The Last Sparkle | PDF]
- native to humans
- suppressed by circumstances
- reclaimable through healing and meaning
3. The felt experience of being aligned
In your Sparkle framework, sparkle re-emerges when a person moves toward:
- inner peace
- self‑worth
- trust in life
- grounded optimism
- purpose-driven action [dcscchc-my...epoint.com]
So “born to sparkle” means we are designed to function best when we are internally aligned, not merely productive or well-behaved.
What sparkle is not
This distinction matters, especially in wellness spaces.
Being born to sparkle does not mean:
- always being happy
- being extroverted or charismatic
- spiritual bypassing
- toxic positivity
- denying pain or hardship
Your narratives make it explicit that sparkle often returns after hardship, not instead of it. [DRC-The Last Sparkle | PDF]
A plain‑language definition (shareable)
To be “born to sparkle” means we are born with an innate capacity for aliveness, joy, curiosity, and purpose—and even when life obscures it, that light can be recovered.
Why the phrase resonates
Psychologically and philosophically, it lands because it affirms three things at once:
- Dignity – Something valuable was present from the start.
- Hope – Loss of sparkle is not permanent.
- Agency – Recovery is possible through conscious steps.
That trio is exactly why the concept has worked so well across your books, programs, and teaching.
Where can we find people who sparkle?
We can find them everywhere – when we look for them.
Sadly, in our modern time, the frequent distractions by (a) social media, TV, cellphones, news etc. have led to many people’s letting their sparkle being extinguished and have let “energy vampires” suck out the energy needed to sparkle consistently.
More and more people have lost their sparkle.
Here is an experiment for you to try today:
Just look on a typical north American urban street and look people in the eye. Try to give them a smile and say “Hello”.
Most of the time, you get a blank stare from dull, lackluster eyes – and at best a quick, forced hint of a smile…
That’s how people who lost their sparkle go through life, stressed, frustrated, angry, sad, anxious, and even depressed or desperate.
Is the situation hopeless? I don’t believe so.
How can we Recover Our Lost Sparkle?
You may or may not know this bible quote:
Matthew 18:1: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
I believe what this means is that children naturally sparkle. We all are born to sparkle, to have a divine light shine in and out our eyes. Children naturally have lots of energy, are curious, don’t judge and are able to adapt to a wide variety of circumstances.
I believe we can learn to do this again, even if we have lost it.
Read this article to see how I see the path to go from sad to sparkle:
https://docchristine.com/how-to-recover-your-sparkle-5-dimensions-of-health-wealth-and-business/
All spiritual traditions remind us and have shown us ways to recover our lost childhood sparkles, and I think it is important to pick the ways that work best for you.
I was raised in the Christian tradition, so Bible quotes are most familiar to me. If you are from another tradition (and I do not judge any of them) , you will probably find similar quotes in one of your sacred texts. And if you have no spiritual traditions, you will find, that the ancient Greek philosophers, as well as many classic works of literature and modern self-help books, contain similar recommendations.
In the end, "All roads lead to SPARKLE" (excuse my substitute of Rome with my favorite Sparkle).
The secret is: You have to get on one of them and then KEEP WALKING!!!
The Duty And Responsibility To Sparkle
Another famous Bible quote:
Matthew 5:14-16: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”
Like all spiritual traditions (as far as I know), Christianity encourages you to show your light, your sparkle.
In everyday life that does not have to mean that you go around and tell everyone else about your specific religion (although that’s a choice some make) or go around and brag and boast about how great you are...
It can just mean to...
- Find a reliable guide or mentor to help you along the path to recover your lost sparkle. This can be a life coach, counselor, spiritual advisor, even a good friend or family member.
- Courageously go the way to recover your sparkle
- Once you are one of the SPARKLES, let your light shine!
- Discover your gift, bring out the art if you re an artist and
- Every day, produce something of value and share it with the world, your audience, customers, clients, your friends and/or your loved ones.
Wayne Dyer said: "Don’t die with your music still in you."
