Life of Dreams

Live the life of your dreams

Seems like simple enough advice.  I have always been partial to Walt Disney’s words, “if you can dream it, you can do it.”  So why then do we all not follow our dreams? I watched my parents work hard all their lives and when the time came for their golden years, my father went to a nursing home and my mother continued to work to be able to afford to keep him there.  They both had dreams.  They both did not get to live out those dreams. Whether they were not brave enough to take the plunge or time and circumstance got in the way, I believe their dreams were never fully realized.

How many of us know people in the same situation? How many people allow their dreams to stay just dreams?  I’m confident many of us know people who have the same story as my parents.  Why do we not pursue those dreams?  Obligation? Fear? If we were truly passionate about our dreams, then obligation could be woven into the fabric of our dreams.  Fear, on the other hand is something we need to overcome.

“That’s easy for you to say, John!” Yes, overcoming fear is very easy for me to say.  So I am putting actions into my words.  I’ve decided to live the life of my dreams.  I’ve cast off the trappings of life and two weeks from today, I will be departing for the Appalachian Trail. And after that, I’ll see what life has to offer.  I’ve always dreamed of living on the road.  I’ve always longed for adventure.  It is time for me to put one foot in front of the other and backpack the world.

–John