"Dreams, my mother always told me,
represent part of our unconsciousness--
the place where we store the true parts of our soul,
away from the rest of the world."
~From Breena quoting her mother in Bitter Frost
I love spring. The hope of bulbs planted in October are now waking up for viewing. I can see the tips of their heads crowning through the soil. This time of the year, we spend hours on a ladder trimming the excess growth on the fruit trees in anticipation of summer's harvest.
I'm a dreamer. I've always had big dreams. I still do. Some of my dreams are small, doable ideas and others are huge life-changing visions. I've been told some of my reveries are delusional; those dreams that survive the naysayers are especially delightful when they succeed. I love when life defies logic and dreams come true.
Today, cutting sucker branches from my favorite plum tree, in my mind's eye, I can see the fruit ready for the harvest. But fruit, like dreams, arrive with a blueprint for perfect timing. Pick the plum too early, and it is hard and bitter. This reminds me that I can't force the readiness of a dream. I can prepare for it, plan for its arrival, but I must be patient. Likewise, the best tasting fruit eaten at its ripened peak allows me to celebrate the flavors, texture and sweet rewards.
What causes me the greatest pain, is the fruit that is left hanging on the tree and allowed to rot. Dreams, hopes, aspirations and goals can also be left out of our lives too long. Sometimes, we think to have a dream we have to set aside everything else in our lives to pursue it. Yet when I talk to those who are most successful, it is when they found the balance between too soon and too late that their dreams became a reality. Perhaps we need to pursue our dreams in increments to birth our big ideas.
The pursuit of a dream can be scary. It's difficult to be so vulnerable in sharing your dreams with others. Fear of failure is a reality; because trying something new means you could fail. But . . . BUT . . . you just might succeed too! And when what you dared to dream becomes reality, the magic of your success rubs off to inspire others to dream as well.
Remember failure is still a forward step because we now know more than we did before we set our dreams in motion, and we know what not to do.
A few positive steps I've found helpful are:
•Define your dream: Clearly know what the end goal will be.
•Commit: Take the necessary steps to move you toward your end goal.
•Habits: Create habits that put you on the pathway of success.
•Community: Surround yourself with those who are successfully going where you want to be.
•Accept Change: Do whatever you have to do to be motivated but also accept that things will be different.
•Persevere: Nothing worthwhile comes easy...if it did everyone would be doing it. Thomas Edison says Genius [success] is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.
Everybody dreams. If you start to live your dream today, just think where you'll be this time next year!
I wonder what dream you have stored away in your heart and soul that begs to be tried and set free? Will your dream ripen or rot? I wish for you a great harvest!
What tips do you have for making dreams a reality?