Drowning in Dreams

I recently watched an inspirational video on success.  It was quite fascinating! 

A young man wanted to be successful, so he went to see a Guru.

“Why have you come to me?” asked the Guru.

“I want to be at the same level as you,” said the young man.

“Very well,” said the Guru.  “Meet me on the beach tomorrow morning at 4 a.m.”

The young man arrived at the beach at 4 a.m.  The Guru told him to walk out into the water. 

The young man walked into the water up to his knees.

“Further,” said the Guru.

The young man walked in up to his waste.

“Further,” said the Guru.

The young man walked in up to his shoulders.

“Further,” said the Guru.

The young man hesitated.  A few more steps and the water would be over his head.

“Do you want to be as the same level as me?” asked the Guru.

The young man nodded. 

“Then you must go further.”

The young man took a few more steps.  When the water was over his head, the Guru held him under. 

The young man started kicking and thrashing and trying to get his head up out of the water, but the Guru held him down.

When the young man thought he could not hold his breath any longer, the Guru suddenly let him go and lifted him up so that he could breathe again.

The young man was furious.  “You could have killed me!” he shouted at the Guru.

The Guru smiled.  “Do you want to be at the same level as me?  Do you want to succeed?”

“Of course I do!” said the young man.

“When you want to succeed as much as you just wanted to breathe, you will be successful.”

The analogy between breath and desire struck a chord with me.  I have all sorts of dreams.  But how badly do I want them? 

It’s easy to imagine how hard I would fight for breath if I had to.  How hard am I willing to fight to fulfill my dreams?

The short answer is:  Not very.

Otherwise I would already be a successful author, a successful knitwear designer, I wouldn’t have a mortgage, I’d be driving a brand new car, I’d have seen Stonehenge and the Maritimes in person and I’d weigh 120 lbs.  The fact is that I’m drowning in dreams, seemingly content not to breathe in the success of having achieved them. 

Hmmm…. 

Now, it’s not like I’ve never achieved anything in my life.  This whole breath and success thing has caused me to reflect on some of the successes that I have inhaled.  I have managed to raise three pretty incredible daughters.  I have a great job.  I have the house that I’ve wanted for years and years.  I have some great friends that are very supportive.  I built a 40’ labyrinth in my back yard.  I am a certified Yoga instructor.  I have published several knitting patterns and they are selling.  

I am currently redecorating my guest room.  For the last week I’ve been scraping badly painted wall paper off the walls, preparing to prepare them for a fresh coat of paint.  I am also working on a mural for my living room.  It’s going to be so cool!  I am working on some new knitting patterns, too.  While none of these are likely to make me rich, they are certainly giving me a deep sense of satisfaction and achievement.  I actually breathed a bit easier yesterday when I stepped back and saw all the wall paper that was not on my walls any more.   Of course, realizing how much Pollyfilla and sand paper I’m going to need felt like being pulled back under, but that’s the point, isn’t it?  If I want my guest room to be the beautiful vision I have for it, I’m going to have to keep kicking upward, wanting to breathe that in. 

So here’s to the future breath of successfully completing my guest room and my mural (more on that in  coming weeks). 

Breathe….

Breathe…

Breathe…