Dream Seeds: Part 1

About to get married in a few months’ time I was worried, really concerned. You see I did not consider myself to be much of a talker. I had a strict upbringing and grew up at a time when children were “seen but not heard”.  So I was used to keeping myself to myself, keeping my opinions locked away in my heart.  Now that I was about to acquire a husband and fully expected to be with him until death do us part, I was afraid that I would not know what to say to him.  I was afraid that the demise bit referred to above, would come sooner rather than later – since my non-existent conversational skills would surely bore him to death!

As it happens, I need not have worried. More than two decades later, my husband chides me for interrupting him when he speaks and for anticipating (wrongly) what he is about to say, then finishing off his sentences. And I suspect he secretly despairs about my tendency to become extremely chatty at bedtime when all he wants to do is slip away peacefully to the land of nod.

Now as I embark on this new journey into the blogosphere, I feel some trepidation. Will I make it? Will my potential readership want to know or even care about what I have to say? Will my dream of entertaining, influencing and inspiring others through my writing come to pass, or will it bite the dust? Only time will tell.

Despite my trepidation, I’ll admit I’m also quite excited.  To see one of my dreams take shape and become a reality after years and years of yearning… thinking… procrastinating… being side-tracked… more procrastination… forsaking… dream-retrieving… then finally doing – is beyond awesome.

So why did it take me so long? Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington believes: “dreams without goals are just dreams and they will ultimately fuel disappointment!” Okay.  I agree.  I not only agree, I can even testify that I made goals (very often the same goals) year after year, after year. Maybe there are some of you out there who can relate.

Well, Dan Rockwell (blog owner of Leadership Freak) explains that making long-term goals give us direction, whilst setting short-term goals spur action.  He further advises: “deadlines turn dreams into reality”.  My failure to set and commit to a timescale was a significant (but not the only) factor that immobilised me.

In his book Dream Seeds, author and motivational speaker, Dr Mike Murdock, refers to “pictures of possibilities” hidden away in our imagination and he further goes on to describe these pictures as “dream seeds”.  We don’t have to be an expert gardener, or farmer to know that a seed once buried in the earth remains invisible and takes some time to germinate.  Before the desired result is achieved (crop, flower or plant), there is a necessary process. And all the while, this process requires the right conditions in order for the seed to flourish.  Is it any wonder then that in the midst of everyday life with its demands and disappointments, its trials and traumas, its ups and downs, the majority of our dream seeds result in crop failure?

Do you have a dream, or have you allowed people, circumstances, even your own self to abort, or uproot it? If you have a dream but you are struggling to keep it alive, don’t be weary – take heart. It may seem like trite counsel but historical evidence from people such as Thomas Edison, has proven the truth of a well-known proverb: “if at first you don’t succeed try, try again.”

Life coach and author, Jason Harvey asks: “Are you just “showing up” in your life or are you taking an active role in guiding it to reach your full potential and dreams?” If your response to Harvey’s question is to make a bunch of excuses, I implore you to read Donna B. Comeaux’s excellent article: Success is a “choice” away (see link below). There’s just no way after reading this post that you could come away still feeling your excuses are justified.

Yes, dreams are notoriously difficult to translate from the sphere of our imagination into the realm of reality but not impossible. It takes planning, persistence and much perspiration. Perhaps you are someone who has given up on your dream. Whether big or small, why not make the decision now to recapture that abandoned desire or aspiration?

Meanwhile, in a bid to both encourage and spur into action, I close with the following words by American poet and playwright, Langston Hughes:

Dreams

Hold fast to dreams

For if dreams die

Life is a broken-winged bird

That cannot fly.

Hold fast to dreams

For when dreams go

Life is a barren field

Frozen with snow.

SEED THOUGHT:   Dreams require goals with deadlines

SELAH (pause & consider):  Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1)

SELF SCRUTINY:   Are you burying a talent or planting a dream seed?

What small step will you take this week towards achieving one of your goals?

RESOURCE LINKS:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dream-Seeds-Mike-Murdock/dp/156394149X http://www.amazon.co.uk/Achieve-Anything-Just-One-Year/dp/0981363903 http://awriterfirst.wordpress.com/2014/01/07/success-is-a-choice-away/

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