A RECIPE FOR DREAMING

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This morning I woke up thinking about dreams. Not the kind you have when you're asleep but the ones you create when you're wide awake... when your heart swells for something beyond the ordinary. I've always been a daydreamer, stealing moments to imagine myself in a million different scenarios, usually with me playing the starring role. I realize I haven't done much of that lately. With every second of my day accounted for, even before I've had my first cup of joe, it seems almost silly to waste precious time drifting off to la-la land. But dreaming is far from frivolous, it's a necessity, as essential as food because it feeds our soul.

As kids our imaginations were limitless. We hadn't learned to edit ourselves or been told some things were impossible. I think that's why kids have the capacity to experience pure joy. They can jump into each new experience with reckless abandon, without expectations, and appreciate any given moment as independent of anything else. Imagination allows us to believe in infinite possibilities, and possibilities enable us to spin bigger dreams for ourselves. And then at some point we're told "stop dreaming and and pay attention" or "don't do this or that." We learn to stifle our true spirit out of fear or disappointment. But every time we allow ourselves to dream, we re-connect with our inner selves, discover our true calling, and open ourselves up to possibilities, which ultimately lead us to achieve more. So go ahead, what are you going to dream up today? All it takes is a handful of imagination, a pinch of possibility, and a dash of gumption. Mixed with the the right amount of elbow grease, we can whip up a recipe for our best possible life yet.

"If we don't take our imaginations beyond the norm, we deny the greatest gift we humans have been given. Putting our imagination into action to find new ways to go is synonymous with the act of dreaming. It is essential to inwardly visualize the destination, to clearly see the dream. To become a dreamer you need only to ask permission from yourself. Remember, whatever the dream, no matter how daring or grand, somebody will eventually achieve it. It might as well be you." - Bryce Courtenay, A Recipe for Dreaming