We all make plans, have hopes and dreams and promise ourselves that someday this or that will happen. But, in reality, for most of us, those ideas remain idle dreams and unfulfilled promises. I can’t tell you how many of those dreams faded away while I was married. We often talked of going places and doing things, but seldom did those dreams materialize. Much of this was due to my ex’s drug addiction, sadly a problem that he never sought help for.
Once we were divorced, I felt energized to keep those promises I made to myself and my children. Instead of someday we will go to Disney World again, I said “We are going to Disney World!” We picked date and made a list of what needed to be done to get there and worked towards that goal. What a phenomenal feeling it was to make good on that promise, not just to my kids who were of course ecstatic to visit Mickey and Minnie Mouse, but even more important to have kept that promise to myself.
After that first promise was fulfilled, a feeling of euphoria swept over me and I decided that we would fulfill more dreams and promises that had been left behind, like old toys gathering dust in a musty attic. I had always wanted to go on a cruise, so I made that my next plan. My boys, then ten and five years old, we thrilled. We poured over pictures and brochures and picked out the location and ship together. Even though we didn’t need them, I got passports for all three of us. The boys thought they were too cool having their own passport and when we did board the ship, they had to have theirs in hand and ready to show the ship’s crew. That someday I will go on a cruise became a reality, a five day vacation that neither I, nor my boys, will forget.
Lately, I have been thinking about the other dreams and promises I have made to myself. I do not want to have another list of unfulfilled promises. I will never again let someone else take away my dreams. What will I do next? Some of the things on my list are rather silly, like buy a horse, or paint my room. Those mundane things though are just as important as the big ideas on my list. My kids have things they want to do too and I have to incorporate their dreams into my list. The list is long, but full of dreams that the three of us have promised we will do....not someday but ONE DAY!!
MMJ
Originally posted from my former blog MJ's Cafe on Blogspot
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