If you can dream it...

Living the dream... 

Usually that's said with sarcasm. But isn't living the dream what we all want? 

And... most of us slog through our days, far from the dreams we assumed we'd achieve.  

What about you? Do you still have unfulfilled dreams?  

I'm a product of the 70s, and perhaps consequently, a sucker for a great guitar solo. But not just any guitar solo. I'd argue that the best of the best is Frank Zappa's Watermelon in Easter Hay from Joe's Garage. 

Before Frank launches into the solo, however, we hear from the Central Scrutinizer: 

Joe has just worked himself into an imaginary frenzy... 
He begins to feel depressed... he knows the end is near... 
He has realized at last that imaginary guitar notes and imaginary vocals exist only in the mind of the imaginer. 
And ultimately, who gives a fuck anyway???... 

My central scrutinizer, the one I call my inner mean girl, what some call their inner critic or gremlin, can stop me flat. 

Usually when we put our dreams aside, it's because life gets in the way, or we're afraid of what others might think, that we'll be judged, or that we're not good enough, not capable enough. We scrutinize our dreams, think they're ridiculous, or that we're ridiculous, and give them up, because, really, who gives a fuck anyway? There was a time when my "who gives a fuck" was "why bother... nobody cares... why should I care...?"


We're our own creative force... 

I go to a little spiritual center on the occasional Sunday, an affiliate of the Center for Spiritual Living and based on the principles of Science of Mind. This year's theme is built around the book, The 12 Conditions of a Miracle, about creating miracles in our everyday lives, and ultimately, about keeping dreams alive and making them real. 

I got goosebumps last Sunday when the guest singer, Michelle Chappel, sang another 70s classic, and my past, present and future collided into a jumbled bundle of emotion. I thought about dreams unrealized, maybe dreams never dreamed because I didn't know I could dream... but I also felt hopeful, about dreams now unfolding.  

Find your gold... 

What kid didn't want to win a golden ticket? Who doesn't want to win the proverbial gold? 

Hold your breath

Make a wish, count to three...

Take a look and you'll see
Into your imagination...

If you want to view paradise
Simply look around and view it
Anything you want to, do it
Wanna change the world?
There's nothing to it

There is no life I know
To compare with pure imagination
Living there, you'll be free
If you truly wish to be

Nothing like a kid in a candy store, except a kid in a magic candy factory. Talk about dreams! Pure Imagination, sung by Gene Wilder in the original Willy Wonka, is as magical and hopeful today as it was then. 

Mind candy...

We all have dreams. As I wrote this post, so many songs about dreams came to mind. Clearly, our dreams are important. They're in part what gives our lives meaning. Another favorite: The Impossible Dream from Man from La Mancha. Or how about this from Pinocchio? 

When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are... Anything your heart desires will come to you...

What do you wish for, long for, hope for? What do you still want to realize before you leave this mortal plane? Sometimes it's as simple, albeit not easy, as shifting perspective, of seeing what's in front of you in new light, feeling grateful for the good you do have, and making the connection to your dream. 

Sometimes, however, there might be very real actions you can take to start living those dreams. 

Now might be the time to check in and see what dreams are still worth pursuing, and then move that dream from the mind of the imaginer to your own real life. Create your own golden ticket by taking a step or two every day to make it happen. 

Because when the end is near, you're the only one you have to answer to. It's your life you'll look back on. You're the only one who has to give a fuck. 

Dream it. Do it. No regrets. 



If you like this post, or this blog resonates with you in any way, please feel free to share it, comment below, or send me a message. I'm also available for one-on-one coaching—you can find out more here. 

Welcoming the new year

Creating a vision board is a good
physical reminder of what you intend
to create in the coming year.

New Year's Eve 2016. It's time to say goodbye to the old and welcome in the new year. For most, the annual ritual brings with it a bevy of traditions and high expectations.

Yet, very few celebrations live up to their promises. Resolutions are made to be broken. The year's dreams may have gone unrealized, or life showed up in ways unexpected. But that doesn't have to mean it was a bad year. What if it's up to our interpretation, and we can interpret it as good?

2016 was certainly an interesting year -- one that produced more challenges and discomfort than some of us are used to. We lost jobs while others lost loved ones, a few faced devastating illness, and a steady parade of beloved public figures -- musicians, artists, actors and authors, among them -- said goodbye to the mortal plane we've traveled together. Injustice throughout our country and the world seems extreme, with countless individuals, communities, and entire nations in crisis. Here in the states, we're about to make a hard right turn politically, ensuring even greater hardship for many. Yes, there are reasons to give in to worry, anger, or even fear.

And yet, there's a lot to be hopeful about.

New Year's Day ends five or six weeks of holiday frivolity and festivity; at the least, those weeks are a diversion from the norm. We interrupt our day-to-day programming and reconnect to the friends, family, rituals and traditions we care about during the darkest time of year (for those of us in the northern hemisphere), or find new meaning if the old familiar doesn't work anymore.

Pragmatically, the days that follow are really 
just a continuation of the year before. 

Idealistically, are they?

That first day of January symbolizes a fresh start. Some of us take time to reflect and look ahead. We clear the slate, make resolutions, change our minds, craft new plans, set goals, declare intentions, choose themes and keywords, and create tools like vision boards or mind maps to guide us as we go. We have hope for better times ahead.

What this tells me is we believe we have the power to create our circumstances, or at some level influence them. For this window of time, we're aware of where we have control and the inner power we possess to direct our own lives. We can choose how we want to be in the world, what we want more of, and express our desires and dreams.

If nothing else, we can choose our responses...

Life happens...

My word, or theme, for 2016 was invest, intending to actively invest in my financial future. To be smart about money. To change my relationship to it.

That wasn't exactly what showed up...

What showed up was losing my job, and instead of financial investment, I found myself investing in me. Hindsight being 20/20, it proved to be a good word, although the shift to this interpretation didn't happen overnight. It came to me slowly, after a number of false starts, breakdowns and breakthroughs, as I sought to explore and understand.

Those investments are now paying dividends, despite no steady paycheck. I invested time and energy in self-care, self-awareness, acceptance, forgiveness, letting go, mindful contribution, learning, and gratitude, and ultimately created new relationships and communities, identified what I deemed most important, learned how to allow, receive, and give differently, and found deeper connections and unrelenting trust.

Despite some anxious days and nights, it was worth every amount of effort; even anxiety has much to teach. Accepting what is and looking for good, I shifted my awareness, beliefs and my thinking, and through all this, experienced moments of bliss and and true joy. My list of what went right in 2016, as I reflect back, continues to grow. To all who were part of my process, I am extremely grateful.

And, all that said, there are many things I'm pretty over. I'm done with the self-doubt that showed up when my job went away. With the self-imposed limits that kept me small and disconnected from my full potential when I wanted to step into something bigger. With stories I learned along my journey that left me feeling 'less than' or disempowered. As I look out into our abundant universe, the collective 'we' continues to imagine, innovate, and create in more ways than anyone ever thought possible. Count me in.

So I have high hopes for 2017. I hope you do, too.

I recognize my good fortune -- I get to choose my experience every day. I can choose to wake up every morning and feel purposeful, joyful, gracious, connected, abundant, forgiving, grateful, healthy and empowered. I'd like to think the energy I create with this perspective contributes in a bigger way to the world around me, to making us all stronger and better.

As I remember that the point of power is in the present moment, and that small steps often lead to big leaps, no matter what happens outside of my control, I can make decisions that ripple into my future. We do, indeed, live in interesting times, and it takes all of us doing what we do best to make the world a better place. During the holiday break, I (finally) read Man's Search for Meaning -- an amazing story of the human spirit and what we're capable of. We all have the power to choose, no matter what.

My word, or theme, this year? I'm leaning toward imagine, as in, imagine the possibilities, or spaciousness and expansion. I want to nurture my imagination and daydream more to create the world I want to live in. And then, "be the change". Creating a vision for what's possible is always more powerful than replaying the past, or creating a future based on previous experience. I'm not looking for more of the same...

What about you? What do you do to usher in the new year? Do you have a word or theme?

A sampling from my vision board.
 It's a legendary year.
I have a great job that allows me to express my talents and abilities.
My blessings are unlimited and they fuel big ideas, have staying power,
and the good news just doesn't stop. I am mindful, yet expansive,
and I know doing the little things counts. I'm connected to collective wisdom,
making the world a better place.
Together we create a brighter tomorrow.