Letting go...holding on

Criticism, lack of money, lack of “know-how,” and the onset of “reality” after high school and college are all often the most common excuses people give for leaving their dreams to be unfulfilled.
Some let naysayers and nondoers tell them to “get real” or call their dreams and desire to pursue them “crazy” and “stupid.”

Others make up a boundary between them and their dreams because they think they don’t have enough money or knowledge.

And then most fall victim to the predetermined destiny that society establishes for all of us. That we need to get a degree, get a job, find a husband or wife, “settle down” and to basically give up, and be happy doing something we may despise.

Letting go of dreams may be a little difficult at first but also relieving. You don’t have to put yourself out there anymore, you don’t have to listen to the naysayers, no risking it, and no more hard work. It might seem like Easy Street.

Settling down may be nice for a few years or even a few decades for some. But after awhile something happens…

No matter how far you bury your unfulfilled dreams in the ground, no matter how much dirt you throw on top of them, they rise from the dead and claw their way above ground like zombies.

By the time they reach the surface, they’re full of vengeance and thirsty, thirsty for blood.

They’re after you. They want you and they need you.

They’re going to haunt you to the end.

Every year the ball drops on New Year’s Eve your unfulfilled dreams come flooding back to your memory.
When you lose a loved one, you think of how short life is and your dreams come back hoping for you to achieve them.

The days when you don’t feel like getting out of bed to go to work, your dreams come crawling back, carrying the “what if’s?” and the “shouldas, wouldas, and couldas.”

The longer you wait, the louder and more vicious your unfulfilled dreams will become. They eat away at your mind, your soul, and your heart. They stalk you and are there at every turn in life asking you “what if?” and force you to ponder about what could have been, what you should have done, and what you could do if you could go back in time.

Your unfulfilled dreams won’t be unforgiving, not even when you’re on your death bed. They’re not giving up on you for giving up on them. They’re getting their revenge.

To prevent yourself from becoming haunted by your unfulfilled dreams, you already know what to do. Turn dreams into goals. Don’t wait. Don’t contrive excuses for yourself. Use the words of naysayers against them to prove them wrong. Work hard. And don’t settle for anything less than your best.