I didn’t ask if you were satisfied or if your life was problem free, I asked, Are you happy? Happy in your heart where it really counts.
So many times, we find ourselves drifting through life doing what is necessary just to get by, for whatever reason. From the time we are born, we are lead and guided by those who think they know what’s best for us, often guided by their own experiences. However, you and only you, truly knows and understands what makes you happy.
If you had a choice to do anything you wanted what would you be doing? I’m not talking about just a momentary break from life; I’m referring to everyday of your life. Is there a passion that runs deep down in your soul, but you have kept it locked away, because you have followed what others believed was best for you. How many people do you know who have fallen into the trap of taking over the family business or have became a doctor or lawyer because that’s what their father did, or their father before them did?
Often, we are cornered into taking our lives in the direction others have laid out for us although we have no real burning desire to be, or do, what others have destined us to do with our lives. “I always wanted to be a painter but…, I always wanted to be a writer, a racecar driver, whatever it may be, but instead of following our passion we allowed our love or our sense of responsibility to force us into doing the expected.
Have you thought about what you would do if their where no influences in your life from others? What is your passion? What would you do if you could do anything your heart desired?
I can name two, off the top of my head, who pursued their passion and achieved not only a life for themselves but fame and fortune along the way. NASCAR racing champion Dale Earnhardt Sr. and talk show host Oprah Winfrey. Did they just wake up one morning and say my passion is racing and then automatically become great, an instant success with money flowing like wine. Of course not, they made a choice to find a way to make their passion their lives work and they became not only rich but admired, for their triumphs.
It’s easy to spot those who are living their passion, whether it is a teacher, a baseball player, a dancer, or a singer. They have a special something that sets them apart from others in their field and it’s not just the amount of money they make. However, you most likely will find those who have a real passion for what they do have become monetarily successful and they are happy. Not because of the money but because they are living their dream. They wake up every day and get to do something they love and it shows. If you are passionate about what you are doing, you are going to do a better job, you are going to put forth more effort, and you are going to reap the rewards.
Pursuing your passion is not an easy task. In many instances, it can be more difficult than just roiling with the flow and doing the expected. We all have to face challenges in our lives, whether we are doing what we love or just working at getting by. Since we all have to deal with the challenges of life doesn’t it make more since to face those challenges while pursuing our passion instead of just settling for what others think we should be doing?
You may be thinking I don’t have the time or the resources; I have too many responsibilities to follow my dream. Those are only excuses and we all have them. The afore mentioned individuals had responsibilities and had many hurdles to overcome in order to pursue their dream. So what makes those who succeed at pursuing their dream different from the rest of us? Sacrifice! Ask anyone who has ever made a living doing what they love and they will tell you there were many sacrifices along the way. Suppose your passion is becoming a writer. The biggest challenge most writers face is time. They have families to juggle and often fulltime unfulfilling jobs and very little time for hours spent writing draft after draft after draft until their writing is polished enough to be worthy of publication. Very few things worth pursuing in live come easy and they all come at a cost. The key to those who succeed is that they are willing to make the sacrifices it takes to pursue their passion and become the best they can be at it.
Take Dale Earnhardt for example. Read his biography and you will find that the man made many painful sacrifices in his life to pursue his dream. I’m not saying you should sacrifice all that is important in your life just to follow your dream. I am saying that if you have a passion and a burning desire to be something nothing is stopping you but you and your willingness to make the necessary sacrifices. Your passion should be a priority in your life and not just something you lay on the back burner to pursue when the time is right. Life will eat you up, spit you out, and be over before the time is ever right.
Our happiness lies in our passions not in just doing what is necessary or right according to others. It doesn't seem to matter how many hours are in a day we always find the time to take care of our priorities, whether its work, kids, husbands, or taking care of our elderly parents. Therefore, it only seems reasonable that if we make or passion a priority we will somehow make the time to pursue it.
It is only by discovering our true passion and then establishing goals towards that end, that we discover true happiness.
Your choice. Are you willing to just get by and do what’s expected of you or is it time to rip free of whatever is constraining you and make the choice to accept the necessary sacrifices and reap true happiness?
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My prayer is that you can spend your days doing something you love, which will fill your days with happiness.
Granny
Good morning. Well, I am back home from my extended stay in California with the grand babies. What a wonderful time I had. It amazes me how quickly the little ones grow. It's like watching a flower bloom in spring. One day they are crawling and it seems like the next they are walking.
Maddy will soon be 9 months old and is standing, pulling up, and almost walking. Little Jack isn't so little any more and is talking in full sentences. He is also a tribute to the tag "terrible two's". LOL He is such a smart and awesome little boy.
