Wow, How Lucky Am I?

Yes, I truly am one of the luckiest people ever. Not many people can say that they were able to meet their Guardian Angel in real life. To say that meeting you was a life changing experience doesn't even begin to do you justice.

Although I made an attempt to put into words in a previous Post exactly how we met, You Were Right On Time, words don't even seem to be enough to begin to describe what my Angel has done for me. In fact I know they aren't but words are all I have.

I had no idea when we first met how much my life would change, more so how my outlook on life and my future would change. She helped me turn my despair into drive, desire and motivation. Motivation to make my life the best it can be.

At the time we met, I was going through a complete life transformation of sorts. No doubt I was pretty much on an emotional roller coaster, extremely unsure if all the changes that I was implementing in my life were actually a good thing, not to mention the unsure feeling of not knowing whether or not I could actually stay on track to make them happen. To say I was a basket case is a complete understatement.



While I'd like to think that I have a bit of inner strength, courage and even a hint of willpower, as I've come to learn over these last four years I have much more of each of those traits than I even realized. But I'm unsure as to whether or not I had ANY of those traits prior to meeting my Angel.

Yet, for those that know me, they know I'm an open book and so I never hesitated in letting her know what was on my mind and the struggles I was going through. She never judged me, never looked down on me or held my issues against me. She continued to lift me up, seemingly carrying me on her shoulders, never letting me give up. To say that she schooled me on perseverance is putting it mildly.

When I found myself feeling down and unsure about my future, she continued to force me to look at the positive side of what seemed like a completely negative situation, never letting me fall into my self made trap.



I did my best to describe in an earlier Post just how much having her in my life has meant to me, My Dearest Annabelle, but again, it's just not possible to describe the impact she has had on my life in mere words.

I recently reached a four year milestone of sorts and I KNOW for a fact that if it hadn't been for the life lessons she has taught me, actually reaching this point would have been so much more of a battle. She set the bar so high for strength and courage that there was just no way I could give up or give in. Quitting was NOT an option.

While people may talk about courage in the face of extreme adversity, I dare them to face what she faced on a daily basis and not completely buckle. Not only did she talk the talk, she truly walked the walk and set an example for me that I can only hope to strive for. And I do my best to live up to her expectations on a daily basis.



I find myself being tested quite often these days, seemingly even more so than I have in the past and while I thought those hurdles were insurmountable at the time, of course I've come to learn that somehow I made it through them. Thanks to my Angel, I was able to conquer those problems and continue moving forward to make a better life for myself.

Sure, my life is nowhere near perfect but who's is? Even the richest people on earth have bad days, wake up miserable and ungrateful for what they have. Noone is immune to problems in their lives but as they say, it's not what happens to us that determines our future, it's how we respond to those situations that determines how they will affect our lives.



As I've come to learn, this couldn't be any more true. I was taught this principle by a woman that conquered more in her lifetime than any of us should ever have to endure. She was, is and always will be my pillar of strength. My shining example of how ones life should be lived.


Strength, Courage, Determination and Perseverance have become more than mere words to me, they are the principles that determine how my life should be lived. My Angel taught me that.

While I sometimes struggle to keep these principles in the foreframe of my mind, whenever I find myself feeling down or up against some type of adversity, all I have to do is think about how my Angel would respond in this same situation and I'm able to persevere through the perceived obstacle, fighting my way through to a feeling of accomplishment I never would have known had I just given up and thrown in the towel.



We all have daily struggles, no doubt about that but I know that I am truly one of the luckiest people alive because I have my Guardian Angel watching over me. Thanks to her, I know that the only way I can ever fail is to give up. To give up fighting for my dreams. She taught me that failure is NOT an option.

Thank you Annabelle, from the deepest part of my heart and soul. Thank you for everything you have taught me about life and how it should be lived. To be grateful for every minute of life that we are given. I do my best to show you every day that all the lessons you taught me were not in vain. I strive to be the best ME I can be.

While I will never be able to pay you back for all you've done and continue to do for me on a daily basis, I hope that as you're watching me from up above, that I can make you proud of what I do and who I strive to become.

I had never considered myself to be a lucky person whatsoever, in fact completely the opposite. But you have shown me all of the positive things I have going for me in my life and while I may not have everything in my life that I'm working towards, yet anyway, I know that as long as I continue putting everything I have into building the life of my dreams, anything I desire is truly possible.




Annabelle, I miss you every minute of the day and night and I want you to know that there isn't a second that goes by that you aren't on my mind and in my heart. I love you and you will forever be with me in my heart.

How Do You Know When It's Right?

This is a question that I've been asking myself from about as far back as I can remember. Well, at least somewhere back around the time I became interested in girls. Come to think of it, I've been interested in girls from as far back as I can remember. Sheesh, that IS a long time.



Hard to believe I've been struggling with this question for that long. How will I know when it's right? How will I ever be able to tell when I've met THE ONE? This just has to be one of the most often asked questions, regardless of gender.




I'll bet even the Cavemen were asking this very question as well. I kinda wonder if they just knew it by the feeling of their hair as they drug them into their caves. I'm not thinkin' communication was a huge part of a relationship back then.





I can remember my Dad telling me, "Oh, you'll know when it's right." What kind of a lame answer is that? That seems to be the default answer that every parent read in "The Dummies Guide To Raising Your Kids". Haven't we all heard that standard answer about a million times?





Sure, as kids we fall for it about the first three or four hundred times but after that, we begin to question the logic behind such a theory. At that point, we don't even know how to drive a car, how in the hell are we supposed to know if she's THE ONE? Our one and only, our destiny, our soulmate?



"Oh, don't worry, it's a feeling you'll get inside. You'll know when it's right". Huh? Inside where? Based on that theory, I've met the one on more than one occasion. And let me tell you, it's pretty damn obvious at this point that they weren't the one. At least not the one I dream about anyway.




And besides, what exactly is this feeling that I'm supposed to be getting? Is it a peaceful, serene, quiet inside type of thing or is it a full on frustrating, raging sexual tension kinda thing? It's comical how those that say that I'll know it when I feel it sure as hell are lousy at describing the feeling themselves.


If they found it so easily, and knew they had found it then it seems to me that they should sure be able to describe it just as easily. But all to often that doesn't seem to be the case. Nope, not at all. In fact, completely the opposite.



Most of those that you ask just seem to begin staring at the floor, shuffling their feet in hopes that it's all a bad dream and the question will somehow just disappear, back to whence it came. But no such luck. This is a question that demands an answer. An answer to an as yet unsolved mystery.



So as the questionee begins to ponder all of the possible answers they could give in an effort to just get it over with and answer the question at hand, their mind goes into hyper~drive and the smoke starts pouring out of their ears.






Not only do they not have a legitimate answer, now they find themselves swimming in a sea of self doubt, wondering as to whether or not they themselves ended up with their one and only. After all the questions they asked themselves before they ever made their connection, did they make the right choice?



No doubt they were so sure at the time, not a question in their mind but for some strange reason things aren't so cut 'n dry for them. So they start mumbling some kinda mumbo jumbo, praying that their phone will magically ring, allowing them to get out of answering the original question.



Noticing the extreme anguish on their face, it's probably best to just withdraw the question at this point. No need to cause a divorce over a stupid question, right? Well, it's not that it's a totally stupid question, just one that isn't all that easily answered. No matter how easy you think it is.




Perhaps that's because it's more of a feeling rather than a thought, a process of elimination. Assessing all of your feelings, both positive and negative as they pertain to the person you desire to be with and then coming to a conclusion of sorts, which would make complete sense as I truly believe that the decision to spend the rest of your life with someone is a decision that will have to be made by you, not an outsider so to speak. But for some reason that sounds entirely too logical.



While their input and advice can be a welcome thing in this situation, ultimately it's you that is going to have to decide what's right for you. Oh, and I guess the person that you're planning on spending the rest of eternity with should have a bit of a say in this decision as well. I mean, it's only fair.





After all, this is a huge decision. For both of you. This pretty much spells the end of the road as it were, the end of the dating road. Which as we all know can be a huge blessing. Whether we'd like to admit it or not, DATING SUCKS!



At least for most people it does. Yes, there are some serial daters out there that have made dating their lifes mission, seemingly never wanting it to end. Kinda like those kids that stay in college for 14 years and never graduate. The real world can be a scary thing, same as a real relationship. So much better to hide in the Land Of No Commitment, the home of zero expectations.



I would have to believe that almost everyone would rather be in a monogamous, committed relationship but find it so much easier to just skate through life, single and scammin'.



Like a rock skipping across a pond. Never really landing anywhere stable, just droppin' by only long enough to get some traction for another leap towards who knows where, movin' on to something seemingly bigger and better.

But as we all know, eventually that rock sinks into the muddy, murky depths below, never to be heard from again. And so it is with the dating world. All those years of going from pit stop to pit stop will surely leave you in the pits. Doesn't sound very appealing to me, that's for sure.


But the other side to that dreadful race to nowhereville is the other form of hell, known as settling. Yep, in essence giving up and doing whatever it takes, basically sacrificing your soul to avoid being alone. Surely that's not the answer. Is it?

Damn I hope not because to me, that's just as miserable, if not more so than being alone. I'm sure we've all known plenty of people that although they aren't physically alone, they are some of the loneliest people on earth. Married, kids, the whole nine yards, yet they are so unhappy and only wish they were single again.

How terrible would that be to know that you're in a relationship with someone that you aren't attracted to, have nothing in common with and have zero connection to. Besides a Marriage License of course. Yet, in essence you're stuck with that person forever. I'll take being single and alone over that prison any day of the week.




I truly don't believe that life was meant to be spent alone. Sure, it might appear to be an easier way to live. In theory you can avoid all of the heartache, heart break and disappointment that some relationships tend to entail. But you'll also miss out on all of the joy, happiness and bliss that comes from finding the one. From spending your life with your true love.

Although I have yet to meet my one and only, I know it's only a matter of time before I do. And I also know that it will be worth all of the heartache I've had to endure along the way. It's like they say, without the bad, how would we know when things are good? And I have no doubt that's true.


Of course it totally sucks (ok, MAJORLY totally sucks!) when you're going through all of those bad times and it's even worse when some well meaning individual tells you that it just wasn't meant to be, which at that point is pretty much the last thing you want to hear.

Eventually though, once you scrape up what's left of your heart off the hot asphalt with a worn out spatula (how's that for a visual?) and begin to trudge the long and lonely road ahead once again, you come to realize that it never would have worked for the long haul and to continue on would have just been futile.




And for me, it has to be able to stand the test of time. I want a long term, monogamous, commited relationship and I refuse to bring my heart out of hiding for anything less than that. Why risk all that heartbreak on a connection that doesn't show all the signs of having that possibility? No thank you, not interested.

Problem is, in your mind you were thinking that maybe she could be the one but once you begin to be honest, with yourself and who you truly are on the inside, you have to admit that although you knew it wasn't totally there for you, perhaps the compromises that you were willing to make just wouldn't have been worth it in the long run.

I have no doubt that true love does exist and it will require some sacrifices and to some extent you also have to make compromises. But that isn't to say that you must compromise who you are, on the inside, for another person.



Once you begin to change who you are as a person and what you truly want in a relationship for the sake of not being alone, that is a sure guarantee that you will never be happy in the end.

With over six billion people on the planet, you'd have to think that there's someone, a soulmate, a one and only, out there for everyone. The problem is, how on earth do you find your soulmate? And when and if you are lucky enough to find your one and only, how will you know for sure that this person is THE ONE? Oh, you'll just know.....



Have you found yourself wondering when and IF you'll ever find THE ONE and how you'll know when you do, I'd appreciate hearing your and your feelings about your quest for your soulmate and if you enjoyed this Post, I'd appreciate it if you'd share it with your friends.

Dreams Really CAN Come True!

Wake Up! Hey, wake up! I heard a voice, not sure who's it was but it was seemingly directed towards me. Only one problem, I wasn't asleep! Therefore, why on earth would someone be saying that to me?

As I looked around, I couldn't see anyone around me. Certainly not close enough to me that I'd be able to hear their voice so clearly, so distinctly. That's why I picked this beach, seems like it's always empty. Just the way I like it. No, make that just the way I love it!

Which I could never quite figure out. I mean, how can a place like this EVER be so deserted? I'd have to think that this place would be crowded, even at midnight. Yet, here I was, all alone, seemingly surrounded by what appeared to me to be literally mile after mile of endless white sand.



The crystal clear turquoise water, lapping at the shore, the sun glistening off of everything it touched. Beautiful cliffs shooting straight up from the pure white sand, like skyscrapers on their way to heaven. I couldn't help but think to myself that this is truly as close as one can get to heaven on earth.

Everywhere I look, I see something even more beautiful than what I was just looking at the minute before. The surroundings are just more astonishing than anything I could have ever imagined. And believe you me, I've imagined visiting Greece from as far back as I can remember.



I believe what really struck me were the views. It was as if you were looking out across an endless azure sea, dotted with so many islands that you couldn't begin to count them all. I dreamt of sailing to each and every one of the islands, searching and exploring every nook and cranny, discovering all of the hidden jewels that each had to offer.



I could feel my mind wandering, drifting off and imagining what it must have been like to sail the Mediterranian Sea 150 years ago, each of the Isles just awaiting the arrival of some unknown explorer.



As I look back, I'd have to think that this fantasy was born from my numerous trips to Disneyland as a kid. Being born in Anaheim, D~Land was a mandatory part of growing up. Just as the Pirates of the Caribbean and the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House were guaranteed stops during each visit to the Magic Kingdom.



I absolutely loved both of those rides, along with another adventure unto itself, the triple masted sailing vessel Columbia was another huge memory maker for me. Cruisin' around Frontierland in that giant ship, so high up off the water, I couldn't help but think about sailing around the world in search of buried treasure.

Yes, I have no doubt that my affinity for Greece was born around this very time. And as I got older, I began to appreciate the architecture of all of the stark white buildings seemingly stacked, one on top of each other so perfectly yet precariously balanced on the sheer cliffs that are the Greek Isles.





The beautiful variety of contrasting colors of the roofs being the only telling sign that all of the houses weren't just figments of ones imagination. No, they were most definitely real and to think that people actually lived in such an incredible place has amazed me my entire life.



And while we've all experienced seeing pictures of a dream destination, only to find upon arrival (think Chevy Chase in the movie 'Vacation', arriving at that Campground in Colorado) that it never lived up to everything we had imagined, I have yet to hear of anyone whos life wasn't completely changed and changed for the better by visiting Greece.

I can already tell, even though I've only just now gotten here that my outlook on life will never be the same. Everything I've seen so far has been unbelievable and to think it's only day one. I can hardly wait to see more.



The only thing that continues to cross my mind is that neverending question of why. Why did it take me so long to finally fulfill a dream that I've had almost my entire life?

Then I caught myself getting so wrapped up in the past rather than concentrating on enjoying the splendor of the present and so I immediately began to reimmurse myself in my spectacular surrroundings. As they say, so much to do, so little time and so I allowed my mind to wander off again, to all of the surprises that the next two weeks held in store for me.

"HEY, WAKE UP!!! It's after 5:00 and we wanna lock up the office." Huh? This time the voice was so close, I just knew this person was talking to me. But I thought to myself, Office? What office? As far as I know they don't have any offices on the beach in Greece.


As I recall I awoke to a colleague, having grabbed me by the shoulder and jostling me from side to side, telling me that I had a piece of paper stuck to the side of my face.

A piece of paper stuck to the side of my face? My intital response was "Yeah, right!" but then as I spoke, I felt something weird on the side of my face and as I reached for it, sure enough, it was a piece of paper. How the heck did that get there?

You guessed it. Apparently I WAS asleep (and obviously to my shagrin, I had been drooling as well, hence the paper stuck to my cheek. Beautiful...) and all of this was just a dream.



My visit to the land of the Acropolis, relaxing poolside in Santorini, eating at an exquisite outdoor cafe while enjoying everything that Greece has to offer, every fabulous minute of it was just exactly that, a dream. What a shame. I'm sure the disappointment was written all over my face, along with some ink from the piece of paper that was stuck to my face as well.

I couldn't keep my mind off of it all throughout the drive home and as I pulled in my driveway, I said to myself, "That's it! Enough is enough. Life is too short, I'm not messin' around any more." It was at that very moment that I vowed to myself that I was finally going to do it. I was going to fulfill a life long dream. I'm going to Greece!




And so just as soon as I walked in the door, I headed straight for my computer. I instantly Googled 'Vacation in Greece' and after quite a bit of research I struck gold. I was able to connect with a Guide that has been traveling to Greece since she was a child and with her Greek ancestory, she knows all the ins 'n outs of this beautiful destination.

Which means no time wasted on finding this, searching for that, the itinerary is just as fast or as slow paced as you want it to be. Not everyone is on the same schedule or has the same idea of just exactly what a Holiday means to them.



Some people prefer a faster pace, wanting to squeeze in anything and everything they can, every minute of the day, while others want to take a more leisurely and relaxed approach, choosing to enjoy a simpler daily plan.

Which ever pace you prefer, the choice is yours. There's no end to what you can do....or you can just do nothing if that's what you enjoy. If all you're after is two weeks of rest and relaxation in one of the most beautiful places on earth, then this trip to Greece is for you.

Don't make the same mistake I made, continuing to put it off until who knows when. Until the time is just right? There's never been a better time to go than right now! If you've EVER had the dream of visiting Greece, why not check out www.livelaughlovegreece.blogspot.com to see the many fabulous pictures of previous excursions to this wonderful destination and to get a better idea of the Trip's Itinerary and all of the amazing adventures that await you. One thing's for sure, I'm glad I did and I know you'll be glad you did as well. OPA!!!!



If you've ever dreamed of taking the vacation of a lifetime, yet have continually put it off until the time was just right like I have, why not take a look at www.livelaughlovetours.com to see all they have to offer as they visit many other wonderful destinations around the globe and if you enjoyed this Post, I'd appreciate it if you'd share it with your friends or anyone else you can think of that just needs a bit of a nudge to help them on their way to the vacation of their dreams! I know they'll thank you for it.

Is WORK A Four Letter Word?

Hmmmmm, can work actually be fun? Am I really THAT stupid? What kind of a question is that? Of course it can't. Everybody knows that work HAS to suck. In fact I think it's one of the Ten Commandments or at the very least it's written in the Declaration Of Independence.



I know it has to be written down somewhere, some kind of Law that says that work and fun should never coexist. Like oil and water, they just don't mix, no matter how much you try and shake 'em up.





In fact, I think work is one of those four letter words that can only be mentioned in certain circumstances. You know what I'm talkin' about, the ones that will get your mouth washed out with soap if you utter them in front of the wrong people.



But I find myself questioning this logic. Who started this whole thing of thinking that whatever you do to earn a living has to make you completely miserable? I don't think it could have started as far back as the Caveman days, could it? I mean, they didn't really have to earn a living, so to speak. Their main thing in life was survival.





Whether is was scroungin' around for food or protecting themselves against a low flyin' Pterodactyl, survival was key. Hmmmm, now that I think about it, perhaps this WAS the first instance of earning a living. After all, you need to be alive to live.



Before the exchange of so called money came into existence, the Barter System was the method of choice for getting ahead in life. If you wanted something, you better have something to trade for it. Which is kinda funny because bartering is still in use today.





In fact, just the other day, I watched a video of a guy that bartered his way from a red paper clip on up to a house. Yes, I said A HOUSE! Which he has since gone on to trade for a Cafe'. It was actually a pretty amazing story, well documented and no doubt he was able to meet so many people and have quite a few great experiences along the way.




I guess some things never get old. Free Trade has been a major building block of the world as we know it. Without it, where would we be today? One can only guess at all the things we wouldn't be able to enjoy.





Here again though, I'd have to think that this method of survival probably wasn't a whole lot of fun back in the ol' days. No doubt either one or both parties would feel as if they got ripped off and wanted to cancel the trade but making somebody mad in those days probably wasn't a good idea. So what if you ended up with a purple Dinosaur, at least you'd be able to feed your family.



Apparently the first use of an actual Monetary System didn't come around until about 650 B.C. Perhaps this is when work first began to be considered dreadful. Once you had to break your back for someone else in order to feed your family, I'd have to think this was also about the same time that work became a four letter word. I can hear the bitchin' and moanin' from here.





Jeez, if it started this far back, no wonder people are so angry about having to go to work. Generation after generation, passing down their disdain for the mere thought of the word work would no doubt create an endless amount of hatred towards the mere thought alone. Not to mention the actual physical task itself.



Yet work is what me must do. Must do to survive in this world. And for the most part, if we want to get ahead in life, we must work even harder. Therefore it stands to reason that if we want more out of life, it will come at the cost of living an even more miserable existence. Something about this just doesn't seem very appealing, at least not to me anyway.





Kinda seems like an inspiration killer for the most part. The harder you work, the more miserable you are? Just not making any sense to me. There HAS to be some sort of a mistake here. Who on earth invented this system anyway? Some kind of masochist? Must have been. Nobody in his right mind would have devised such a dream killer.



And to add insult to injury, who came up with this schedule of having to work five days and only have two off? Sounds pretty damn lopsided if you ask me. C'mon, doing something that you absolutely despise for five long, miserable days of the week, only to get two days to attempt some form of recovery and then to go right back to hell for another five days. Obviously this system is seriously flawed.



I wonder if anyone else has realized this? I mean somebody else has to have noticed by now that this entire work thing, this system as it were is messed up and in a big way. And if they have noticed, why on earth haven't they done something to fix it?





Come to think of it, I guess they tried, if you can call it that. Yeah, they have implemented the four day, ten hours a day, work week in certain instances and while that might help, it's surely not the best answer.



Either is the telecommuting thing, that's most likely the best alternative as it eliminates lots of the nightmare of the five day workathon but it doesn't completely remove the issue of spending your days performing a task that you hate.



So where does that leave us? We know we need money to survive. In most cases, in order to make money, we have to work. Ok, so basically what it breaks down to is we need to work to survive. But where does it say that we have to hate what we do for work?





I checked out the Ten Commandments and didn't see anything about it in there. Same with the Declaration, nothing there either. I even went as far as Googling 'MUST HATE YOUR JOB' and couldn't find anything anywhere that stated that you must be miserable for a minimum of forty hours per week, half days on Saturdays and most Holidays when the rest of your family is at the beach. Nope, nothin'.



Then how did all of this BS get started in the first place? Perhaps it was handed down to us by our parents? That along with all the other outside influences that helped shape our upbringing, who undoubtedly passed down the information that they received as children.



Who knows, maybe it was our own assumption, based on seeing just how unhappy our parents were Monday through Friday and realizing at an early age just how precious the weekends were. How those two days were the reward for surviving the previous five days.

Regardless of how it happened, we grew up knowing that work must suck. No doubt whatsoever. That's why it's called work instead of fun. Notice the different amount of letters in each word? Yes, work is a four letter word and fun isn't. I have a feelin' it was planned that way.



Ok then, what are we gonna do about this? Nothing? Just continue on status quo? Or can we change this entire scenario around so that we're able to enjoy our work? Yes, I said it. Crazy as it may seem, I believe there is a great possibility of earning a living while doing something that you truly enjoy.



Stay with me on this. Think about it for just a second. Is it entirely out of the realm of possibility to believe that you could make money doing something you enjoy? Of course not. Think about all of those people all over the world, right now, who are making a living doing what it is that you like to do. So why NOT you? Why not just go for it? What's stopping you?

Even if you start off on a small scale, kind of a part time thing, just pick something you enjoy doing and get started doing it. After hours, evenings, weekends, doesn't really matter. While we all say that we don't have any extra time as it is, I think you'll find that even if you just sacrifice a couple hours of TV here 'n there, you'll be surprised at all you can get accomplished.



Just get going on something that you're passionate about and see where it takes you. I'll bet the next thing you know, you'll be making other sacrifices to allow you more time to pursue your dream. I promise it will be so worth it.

Before you know it you're rollin' and you'll find that there just isn't enough time in a day to do all you want to do towards accomplishing your goal. And let me tell you, that's a great problem to have. Next thing you know, you'll actually be enjoying your weekdays! Maybe even more than your weekends. Can you even imagine that? Getting to a point where your weekends are more stressful than your weekdays? Who'd a thunk it!



So if you find that you're like most everyone else out there, at least those that still have jobs and dread Mondays more than anything, maybe it's time you started thinking of work as anything but a four letter word.

If you can relate to work being a nightmare, I'd enjoy hearing about it in my comments and if you enjoyed this Post, I'd appreciate it if you'd share it with your friends.

Do Dreams Have An Expiration Date?

Lately I find that I'm having to ask myself this question quite often. I mean, does there come a point when you just need to say forget it and push the delete button? I'm not so much referring to the dreams that you have while you're asleep, who on earth can make any sense of those?

The dreams I'm referring to are basically daydreams, the ones that inspire you, motivate you, the unexplainable forces that drive you forward without any apparent reason. At least the reasons aren't apparent to others. Noone else can see what motivates us on the inside.



If they could, it probably wouldn't be a good thing as people, for the most part, aren't usually very supportive of someone elses dreams and aspirations. Nope, it's much better to keep your dreams to yourself or if by chance you're lucky enough to have a significant other that is totally behind you in everything you do, then perhaps you can spill the beans to them.

But you have to be careful because for the most part, others want you to do well in life, follow your passions, live your dreams but only up to a certain point. Once your life, in their eyes, becomes better than theirs, then it's time to throw a bunch of negativity your way in an effort to knock you back down to reality. Or at least the reality that they want you to be living.



But if dreams actually do have a deadline of sorts, that would really suck. To know that if your dreams don't come true in a certain amount of time that you'll have to chuck 'em, just throw them away. Erase them from your thoughts. That would be like throwing all of your hope right out the window. And where the hell would you be without hope?

Pretty much nowhere. Hope is more than likely the main ingredient in all of our dreams. Hope is the basis for everything that drives us forward. Striving for better. Better lives. Better relationships. Better everything.

Surely hope can't have an expiration date for if it did, we'd all be in big trouble. To lose ones hope, even worse, to just give up on hope pretty much spells disaster. If not the end of the road then I'm sure you can see the end of the road from there.



Oh, to lose all hope can be an inner defeat that is very hard to recover from. At least from my experience anyway. It wasn't but a year or two ago, if even that long that I had pretty much lost all of my hope.

Long story short, I basically lost everything I owned along with quite a few other things that I didn't actually own, I just had a ton of money invested in them. And if this wasn't bad enough, along with all my possessions went all of my hopes, my dreams and my motivation.

Yep, right down the drain, never to be seen or heard from again. Whoosh, every reason I ever had for getting out of bed in the morning was gone. My worst fear was coming true.

Losing your stuff is one thing but when you lose your why, it's a whole different ballgame. As long as you have your motivation, you can always get your stuff back. But without motivation, you're basically over and done. Destined for a life of zero.



Luckily for me, I didn't give up and I've been able to recover a good amount of my motivation. That's not to say that I don't struggle with it daily but I am getting better and staying on a forward path. Most of this has come from remembering that no matter what, I can't give up.

And as I've gained back most of my motivation, slowly but surely my hope is beginning to return as well. Hope for a new beginning, for a better future, for a better life. And I'm super grateful for this because without motivation and hope, it's pretty much couch time from here on out. That's if you're lucky enough to have a couch you can lay on.



But even though things are starting to go in a more positive direction, there are still so many missing pieces to my life puzzle that it's not always easy to remain focused and keep my chin up as they say. While some days are more difficult than others, it's still a decision I have to make every day. Keep on pushin' forward or just pack it in?

If I sit there and just think about all of the things that are missing in my life, all of the things that I had hoped would be a gimme by this time, then there's no doubt I'm gonna be disappointed. Completely understandable I would think.

So that's why I can't allow myself to sit there and think about what I don't have. Instead, I have to continue to concentrate on what I do have and what, if I continue to work hard, I WILL have in the future.

Speaking of future, this brings me back to my original question regarding dreams having an expiration date. This doesn't so much apply to any of my previous dreams as I actually only have two that have survived all of the melee of the last couple years.



One that I constantly struggle with, finding myself unable to let go of but I know that at some point in the near future, like it or not I will be forced to come to grips with making a decision. I remain hopeful that before I have to make that decision, the outcome that I desire will manifest itself and I will be able to consider it a dream of mine that actually came true. Fingers and toes crossed, that's for sure.

The other dream, as it turns out has a much better chance of coming true now than it ever had of materializing in my previous life. It's kinda strange how that worked out. Kinda like the last domino standing, remaining by default.



Ok then, along with rebuilding my life I'm finding that I need to make a new Dream List. Sounds a bit crazy as all throughout our lives, dreams just seem to come to us from who knows where. It's not so much that we have to create them, they just seem to be born from our passions, our desires.

But what do you do when almost all of your life long dreams have been wiped out basically overnight and you're forced to start a new list? You can't just fill it up with all those old dreams. Most of them no longer apply. Either they bring with them a sour feeling or they are no longer applicable to your new life.

Luckily for me I still have two dreams I can hang onto. Well, one for sure, the other is either going to manifest itself soon or I will unfortunately have to remove it from the List. One way or another, that will only leave me one and luckily, the remaining dream covers alot of territory so it would take quite alot to either have it completely manifest itself or to be removed.



It's not like there's a DreamMart or a House of Dreams that you can just bring in a coupon and pick up a few dreams. Nope, not gonna be that easy. I'm gonna have to do some soul searchin' to come up with some new ones. That, and I hope that my new life will entail some new experiences and along with those experiences will come new dreams.


Dreams that I have yet to even imagine. Knowing that I'm a major Dreamer, I have a pretty good feeling that I should be able to come up with something worthwhile before too long. Something outrageous enough to be considered unobtainable which is basically the description of one of my dreams.



And as far as dreams having an expiration date, it's possible but I'd like to think that it's entirely up to you whether they do or not. I think the safest bet is to treat them like a gallon of milk at the Grocery Store, they put the newest containers at the back of the rack. So I guess I have no other option.... but to KEEP DIGGIN'!

If you can relate to creating new dreams, I'd enjoy hearing about it and if you enjoyed this Post I'd appreciate it if you would share it with your friends.