birds flying

“Sleep in peace when the day is done. That’s what I mean”

It was around this time, last year, that I was in China for the second time. There was a certain level of excitement for this second trip, as I knew exactly what to expect and prepare for. Salt and pepper. Sriracha. Wet wipes. Workout supplements. Workout supplements. Water flavoring shots. Crunchy food. Thinking about it, there was a whole suitcase almost entirely devoted to my ‘survival’ pack for this trip. What excited me most about returning to China was that I felt prepared because I was a return visitor. More importantly, I knew where to find the only American toilet in the school, keeping my record clean of having to use a ‘squat pot’

Come to think of it, that’s something I’ve very proud of. I’ve been to Taiwan, Thailand, Laos, and China for a combined total of over three months, and have never used a ‘squat pot’ toilet. Dream big, you crazy thing, you.

While I wrote the above portion of this blog on a separate date, it seems to slide into the topic at hand. Dreams.

Watching The Lottery Of Birth, a stunning documentary detailing the infrastructure we’re born into, I couldn’t help but ponder a few things.

When did you give up on your dreams? Were you to ask somebody this question at a Fourbucks, they might have a mixed reaction to your question. There are so many dreamers in Kindergarten…dwindled down to a minute few by the time high school graduation takes place. What happens?

We fear too much and feel too little. You get a lot more elderly pats on the back for stashing pennies inside your retirement fund than you do taking out a loan to start a new venture.

I’ve had many ‘projects’ that I’ve worked on over the years, all in various stages of brainstorming-development-launch-success-failure. From monetizing red light speeders to creating new ways for people to shop online, I’ve been spread all over the map on these projects. The creativity and ingenuity required to launch a project is nothing short of overwhelming, especially when paired with a full-time job. That’s why I quit mine.

“If the only thing you make in your business is money – you’re doing the wrong thing.”

Dreams and projects have rarely been spawned by a first-love of financial gain. Rather, they’ve been dreamt of as new and innovative ways to accomplish X, Y, or Z. Whether it’s creating electricity from nitrate-rich chicken dung or selling off HD TV’s for a few bucks, I’ve always had a rush of excitement and joy associated with my work.

The documentary outlined that we’re taught from a very young age, in school and other institutions such as religion, politics, or social circles, to behave and act a certain way. Even boredom is taught to be accepted as part of our education system; prepping our minds to accept dull and monotonous moments of time that will someday be spent behind a desk, scrubbing a floor, or guarding a building.

The big question I have is whether or not this is “life” or if its simply one lens of life that we’ve been taught to view our lives through. Nothing is truly objective. Our news channels are the first to instruct us that America is the champion of all-things-good and that opposing countries are a force of evil that needs to be extinguished.

Switching gears from career/work life, I believe it sad that our vision of love, relationships, and romance has also been shot to pieces.

In a society with a skyrocketing divorce rate, I can’t help but wonder the cause.

When keeping your word becomes optional and not-to-be-expected, televised gender roles become accepted as normalcy, and people accept cheating as a way of life, it seems that we’ve forgotten that those we come in contact with have beating hearts, minds, and feelings.

I know two married couples who have been married over 30 years and still hold a sparkle in their eye when they speak to their significant other. They’ll be the first to tell you that things haven’t always been perfect, yet their commitment to each other is true and full of integrity. That’s what I want and believe is possible; to want to be with somebody with every ounce of your heart, and know they feel the same way about you.

It’s this type of mindset that I believe is a critical part of living your dreams and not looking back on them as silly childish notions. If you don’t take your own dreams and visions seriously – or doubt their possibility of becoming a reality – how can somebody trust and want to be with you for the rest of their life, if they don’t believe you to be a believer in your own life/passion?

I’ve half-assed a lot of things in my life while doing other things quite well. I want to spend each day living more and making these dreams a reality.

Featured Image From Deviantart