A short while back, Amanda Linehan wrote a post for her blog "Look Far" entitled; "Reflection: Keeping Your Dreams Alive In The Face of Reality". Basically, she asked the question, "is it possible to hold onto a dream while still accepting reality?"
I have to wonder how many times we hear in our life to "just follow your dreams". Sounds easy enough. If I follow my dreams, I will be happy. There it is. My work is finished.
If it were only so easy! Most of our lives do not include a lot of chances to follow every dream we may have. Situations, responsibilities and other limitations prevent us from going off on a wild tear each time a new fantasy pops into our minds. While it may sound good, deeper reflection may show us that this is not necessarily a bad thing. For us to function in this world, there has to be trade offs between dreams and reality.
Should we just give up on our dreams and accept the cold reality that most of them will go unrealized? I certainly hope not! Our dreams have a much deeper purpose than we often realize. Dreams give us hope when we despair. They enable us to go places we physically will never be able to go. Dreams spawn creativity that logical thought is not capable of. What may begin as a fantasy can even lead us to new possibilities that we would have missed otherwise.
Maintaining a healthy perspective concerning our dreams is key to maintaining a balanced life. Sometimes, we have to consider the impact that chasing our dreams may have on those close to us. We also have to consider the long term impact we may place on ourselves. Quitting our job with the hope of landing a leading role in a movie may sound great until we find ourselves without a home or money for food. It becomes an issue of choosing which dreams are possible and which ones are not.
Even if a dream is realistic, it still may require a good deal of planning to make it happen. Very few of us are born with the resources to do everything we want without a plan. On a side note, most of the people I have met who have these resources are no more happy with their life than those of us who do not. Working hard to achieve a dream gives us so much more than the things in our life that come easy.
Use your dreams to your advantage. Chase those you can, providing they will benefit you in the long run. Let your dreams carry you through the dark times of your life. Dream as big as you wish but always return to the present moment. It is this moment that true happiness resides.
As someone commented on the "Look Far" post; "Keep your head in the clouds but your feet on the ground".
Showing posts with label life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label life. Show all posts
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
How Does a Microwave Work?
When I put a cup of water for my tea in the microwave, I press a few buttons to set the time, hit start and before I know it… hot water. I cannot think of a time when I stood waiting and pondered just how the energy waves interacted with the water to create heat. I just accept that the microwave works.
We rarely look at life like this way. We look for reasons behind the most trivial things. Why did they say that? What did they mean by that? Why is the world such a painful place? We dissect and ponder, looking for hidden meanings of things or in the words and actions of others.
On the emotional level, the human mind has trouble accepting things as the way they are. We want life to conform to our needs. We want others to change, making them more acceptable to the way we think they should be. We may spend years waiting, as a song says, for the world to change, believing that it is just a matter of time.
The answer does not lie in knowing why the world is as it is. Peace comes from accepting that there are things we cannot change. This knowledge leads us directly to the present moment, the only time we have full control over who we are. In this moment we can decide how to look at things, how to react, and whether we are compassionate to ourselves and others.
We are only here for a short ride. Accept the things you cannot change. Make the most of the present moment as this is where your life is right now. You will never have a better past. The future is yet unwritten. You can choose whether to fret over what made the water hot or you can just enjoy your tea.
We rarely look at life like this way. We look for reasons behind the most trivial things. Why did they say that? What did they mean by that? Why is the world such a painful place? We dissect and ponder, looking for hidden meanings of things or in the words and actions of others.
On the emotional level, the human mind has trouble accepting things as the way they are. We want life to conform to our needs. We want others to change, making them more acceptable to the way we think they should be. We may spend years waiting, as a song says, for the world to change, believing that it is just a matter of time.
The answer does not lie in knowing why the world is as it is. Peace comes from accepting that there are things we cannot change. This knowledge leads us directly to the present moment, the only time we have full control over who we are. In this moment we can decide how to look at things, how to react, and whether we are compassionate to ourselves and others.
We are only here for a short ride. Accept the things you cannot change. Make the most of the present moment as this is where your life is right now. You will never have a better past. The future is yet unwritten. You can choose whether to fret over what made the water hot or you can just enjoy your tea.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
If Only...
Six letters, two little words. Harmless and innocent by themselves combine to form a foundation of regret and suffering. If only I... If only he... If only she...
Somehow, either consciously or unconsciously we use these tiny words to justify our failure in achieving our dreams, our goals. Is this fair? Perhaps, sometimes. More often than not, these words simply shift the blame, making our shortcomings more palatable.
This is not to say that we are responsible for every failure and disappointment life hands us. Far from it. Life takes its toll on each of us, leaving only the choice of how we face each adversity. Transferring the responsibility for the choices we can control away from ourselves will not make things better.
Next time you catch yourself beginning a sentence with "If only...", allow yourself a gentle chuckle and replace the two little words with two other little words; "Why not". Why not me. Why not her. Why not him.
Six letters, two short words combined, empowering us to dream, to live more fully. We have but one chance in this life. Dream! Fly! Happiness may be as simple as two little words.
Somehow, either consciously or unconsciously we use these tiny words to justify our failure in achieving our dreams, our goals. Is this fair? Perhaps, sometimes. More often than not, these words simply shift the blame, making our shortcomings more palatable.
This is not to say that we are responsible for every failure and disappointment life hands us. Far from it. Life takes its toll on each of us, leaving only the choice of how we face each adversity. Transferring the responsibility for the choices we can control away from ourselves will not make things better.
Next time you catch yourself beginning a sentence with "If only...", allow yourself a gentle chuckle and replace the two little words with two other little words; "Why not". Why not me. Why not her. Why not him.
Six letters, two short words combined, empowering us to dream, to live more fully. We have but one chance in this life. Dream! Fly! Happiness may be as simple as two little words.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
The Moments That Shape Us
Life is an interesting thing. From the moment we are born, events and experiences begin to shape us.
Since I was born at a very young age, I don’t remember much about the first few years although I am sure that this was a time of great change. Then and since, all my experiences have made me what I am today. What I experience today will make me what I am tomorrow.
Every joy, every sorrow, manipulates our brain cells, altering our outlooks and aspirations both for the better or the worse. While we can control to a degree how we choose to look at things, we can not escape the fact that we have changed.
I will be a different person, albeit slightly, when I finish writing this post. You will be a different person by the time you finish reading it. While I do not expect my words to dramatically alter your life, the simple fact that you are reading this means your brain is processing thoughts through chemical rearrangement.
Most of us can think back to our early years and beyond,remembering our life changing experiences. Traumas, successes, and failures place their indelible marks on our psyche changing each of us as we travel down the path of life.
For us to find peace, we need to leave the past in the past but sometimes it helps if we take a moment to understand how we ended up where we are.
Understanding that some events were not in our control and others were, can illuminate the reality of life allowing us to learn from both our successes and mistakes, helping us to forgive ourselves and others who may have unintentionally hurt us.
Let us understand that we are the product of our past but in no way is this the sum of our future. We can not stop ourselves from changing, only make the best choices we can to make changes for the better.
Since I was born at a very young age, I don’t remember much about the first few years although I am sure that this was a time of great change. Then and since, all my experiences have made me what I am today. What I experience today will make me what I am tomorrow.
Every joy, every sorrow, manipulates our brain cells, altering our outlooks and aspirations both for the better or the worse. While we can control to a degree how we choose to look at things, we can not escape the fact that we have changed.
I will be a different person, albeit slightly, when I finish writing this post. You will be a different person by the time you finish reading it. While I do not expect my words to dramatically alter your life, the simple fact that you are reading this means your brain is processing thoughts through chemical rearrangement.
Most of us can think back to our early years and beyond,remembering our life changing experiences. Traumas, successes, and failures place their indelible marks on our psyche changing each of us as we travel down the path of life.
For us to find peace, we need to leave the past in the past but sometimes it helps if we take a moment to understand how we ended up where we are.
Understanding that some events were not in our control and others were, can illuminate the reality of life allowing us to learn from both our successes and mistakes, helping us to forgive ourselves and others who may have unintentionally hurt us.
Let us understand that we are the product of our past but in no way is this the sum of our future. We can not stop ourselves from changing, only make the best choices we can to make changes for the better.
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