But what if you don’t have a dream? Or think you don’t.
I spoke with Stacy last week. She is reading my book, Say Yes 2 Your Life: Journey to Celebrate Your “is-ness.” She shared with me that when she came to the reflection question, “What’s your dream? Is there something you’ve felt drawn to that maybe you haven’t tried yet?” she stared to cry. She told me, “I don’t think I have ever had a dream like that.”
Her words grabbed at my chest. I felt terrible that instead of encouraging her to appreciate her gifts and try something she had perhaps avoided in the past, she felt as though she had no dreams. It never occurred to me that someone reading those words would feel that way. I listened for a while and asked her some questions. As we spoke she realized she had dreams. She just had not seen them that way. I suggested it was all in the way you define the word – dream.
I realized then the disconnect between what I consider dreams and what we see in the movies or on TV. American Idol came to mind. Yes, I confess I used to tune in regularly. I even cast the occasional vote. Here are these young people who dream of changing their lives by becoming the next music superstar! By any definition these clearly are dreams. However, because of images like this we are conditioned to think of dreams as ONLY being something BIG! And, if we don’t see ourselves having a dream that will have a significant impact on our lives, it can’t be a dream. Or can it?
I shared with Stacy that her dreams, while perhaps small compared to becoming the next music superstar, were about honoring the calling she feels to share her gifts. She feels a strong desire to encourage and help young children learn to read. She has in the past volunteered as a mentor at a local elementary school. She told me that lately life keeps getting in the way but she has an idea she would like to make being a mentor part of her life regularly.
That’s a dream.
As we continued our conversation she told me she felt much better. Yes, she realized, she had been comparing what felt important to her with images from outside. And because what she hoped to find the time to do didn’t seem very grand, she thought it couldn’t be a dream. We agreed, dreams are not measured by size. They are measured by their connection to you.
What is your dream? What idea keeps floating into your consciousness as “something you would like to do?” Write and reflecting on what brings you joy. Is there a dream in there somewhere? Perhaps. Remember, there is no such thing as a small dream. The small voice deep within you that often is most clear when you journal or meditate wants to share with you how you can bring your gifts in the world to bring joy to yourself and those around you. Your job is to listen.
Interested in learning more about living your dreams by expressing your gifts? You can order your copy of Say Yes 2 Your Life: Journey to Celebrate your “is-ness” on Amazon today.