I am reminded of an interesting conversation I had with a family member one day. I won't say who that was, because the person I spoke with has a huge internet presence and so does the person I want to talk about.
But hey, I'm a writer and all we do is talk about people we know all day long !! (In directly of course)
But any who, it was mentioned that there is this person who is known for trying to get his small business off the ground. Now this in itself is very commendable because he/she is very young. But the funny thing about it is this person is known among their peers as the one whose always 'chasing the dream.'
Well that's good right? Dreams keeps us alive. Dreams makes us release endorphines that keeps us happy. Therefore, our bodies fight off diseases better. We are just overall happy people.
But then sometimes, dreams can frustrate us. Deferred or unrealized dreams can also make us sick. I was looking at TEDx talks on YouTube and there was a very interesting subject about how MRI Scans tracks brain activity in people who are in love versus those who are not. Certain areas of the brain light up, when you are in love and its linked to a hormone called endorphins.
Endorphins is what cocaine users get a lot of, when they are high. No wonder that want to stay on that plateau all the time.
So back to my question. What happens when dreams don't come true? And let's be realistic here. Sometimes they don't. So what do you do then? Do you lay down and die? Do you slit your wrist? Do you become a house hermit and never interact in life again?
Absolutely not!
You keep on living! You keep dancing in the sunshine! It's like the old saying goes. Sometimes you can love something so much, you have to let it go and if it comes back to you, it was yours all along. Now that's my motto in life. I'm the queen of letting things go!
So that brings me to my next point. Let the dream chase you! Well, what do I mean by that? I mean, our life spans are short and I am not going to spend every waking moment of my life obsessing over 'the dream.' The dream can and will follow me. (That is, if its meant for me)
I was reading a book about a couple who said they always obsessed over trying to make their small business venture a success. Now anyone who has a small business or even a larger one knows that it takes a lot of blood sweat and tears to make the project fly. But this is the hardship of it all, the whole time the couple focused on the business, their personal relationship was going down the tubes.
They argued and bickered all the time. They didn't get a long. They had a much better relationship before the idea of running a business ever came into play. Ultimately, the couple reset their priorities and decided that their relationship was more important than some business venue.
That's how I feel. When the smoke clears, what is more important to me is that I didn't waste my life chasing the dream. In stead, I let the dream chase me. If I wanted to spend a day in the park or an afternoon at the beach, that's what I do. Maybe, all this wealth stuff and success stuff is all a mirage.
Sometimes you just reach a point in your life when you redefine what matters most to you. For me, its watching the sunrise or set. It's listening to children running and playing. It's listening to dogs barking. It's watching people dance at a party. It's going to a concert and watching a live band! Now to me, that's life. That's living.
Not being cooped up in some old office, or stuck in your garage, plotting and planning my next move for 'the dream.' You know because 'the dream' is ALL that's important right? Perhaps, for some, but not for me.
You see, I have been sick for many years now with my evil old belly. And when you are sick for so long. By the time you start to recover, you see life through a whole new set of lenses. In addition to that; you notice days, months and years that have gone by and all that time, you were bed ridden. And just fighting to have a pain free day.
Now do you see where 'chasing the dream' is less and less important. So what dream am I chasing. My movie deal!! That's right. I want to see my novel on the big screen! I want my novel to be the next Lord of the Rings!!
Side note...I received a wonderful compliment from a friend who read my novel "Rainy" and she said Tammie this weekend I saw a really great movie. And the entire time I was watching it, I thought about you. And I said ' Oh wow, that's great! What was the movie?"
And she said...
LORD OF THE RINGS !!
Omg..You could have bought me for a penny. I had the biggest smile on my face. That's all I wanted. Rainy was written under the inspiration of 'Lord of the Rings'. I'm just so happy that some one else saw that without me having to tell them.
OK so back to my post!
So this is what I'm saying. I can't be so obsessed with being a film maker or having a movie deal that I can't see the sun when it comes out. I still have to keep on living regardless of how this story plays out. That's why my motto is 'let the dream chase me' !!
One more thing before I close. I read an article somewhere about Steve Job's final days. And right before he died people asked him how did he feel about his work at Apple. And he said something to the effect of how now 'it really didn't matter'. This man was preparing himself for the new chapter of his life. Immortality!!
And he's not alone we all will !!
But the interesting part is, at the end of the day: does it really matter? Book deal, movie deal, your name in lights...etc. Does it really matter? Well, we all have to define what is important to us.
For me, when I'm an old lady and I look back over my life. I want to be able to say.. "You know what life, you kicked my arse while I was on earth. But now that's its all said and done..the last words I want to leave to you is this..
'Whenever I got the opportunity, I always danced in the sunshine !!'
Stay encouraged people and don't take life so seriously!!
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