Denis Waitley once said that “a dream is your creative vision for your life in the future. You must break out of your current comfort zone and become comfortable with the unfamiliar and the unknown.”
I think my dream to become an international motivational speaker is taking shape, because simultaneously I am being challenged to remain positive and “just pursue it” with all that I have to offer — in spite of appearances.
These past three years have been something of a roller coaster: I became engaged, I got married, I traveled to my dream destination (Thailand), and then I had a baby. If you told me that all this would be happening to me 5 years ago I would have probably laughed at you.
I wouldn’t have believed that it is possible to have so many life-changing events happen within a few short years.
I suppose it’s called, “life.”
There are no “life instruction manuals” that arrive with us when we are born, so I suppose the “life tests” that suddenly show up through the years are a way for us to learn something new about ourselves, and grow into something more.
One of those missing “life instructions” is that “dreams require time and effort.” I have what it takes with the effort part, but trying to be a super-mom-wife-blogger-media-designer-daughter (and sister) requires loads of my time. I wish there were 30-hour-days to fit in everything. The time part has been getting me down.
And beyond this dream of mine, I feel that my most important job is being a good mother.
I had an epiphany this week when I realized, “I’m a career girl. I need to nourish myself with my passions and make time for my dreams. But what am I to do? How do I be the perfect mother and also do what I love?”
Two Words: Day Mother.
I decided to step out of my comfort zone and interview a day mother. I think you may call her a “nanny” in your country of origin.
In interviewing this particular day mother, I was happy to hear what she had to say about watching my little one. So yesterday, I did what I never thought I’d ever do as a new mother: I took my daughter to a day mother.
The drive to her home was emotional for me (to say the least). I kept staring at my baby and kissing her many times. When I dropped her off I tried to be strong while explaining to the day mom what was in my daughter’s baby bag. Â I spoke so fast . . . and then kissed my angel goodbye and ran back to the car.
I kept up my strong face until my husband said, “I’m proud that you were strong in front of our daughter.”
Upon hearing him say this to me I was catapulted immediately into crying mode. I cried like a baby. The feeling of guilt washed over me like a rainstorm. How could I leave my precious child with someone else?
I felt terrible.
As we proceeded back down the freeway, the car broke down. We assumed it was the faulty petrol gauge that (supposedly) was fixed. The car showed that we had sufficient petrol, but we still ended up walking 40 minutes in search of petrol (gas). We had no other choice but to walk and find a petrol station. The walk included climbing a tree and jumping over a spiked fence.
I felt like a teenager again: tear-stained face, sad about something, and walking where I needed to go.
To my great surprise, this car problem turned out to be exactly what I needed. My husband and I held hands the entire time while talking about our dreams and how leaving our daughter with a day mom was part of me growing and achieving my dreams. We laughed while talking and getting lost in an unknown suburb.
We ended up using Google Maps to get us back to a main road. Â We finally spotted someone and asked them where the nearest petrol station was. Â This kind man, “Colin” looked at my hubby (who was very smartly dressed in a blazer, shirt, slacks, and formal shoes) and decided to give us a ride to get the petrol.
There are good people in this world.
Colin dropped us back on the freeway, and even though we insisted on paying him for his effort, he refused to accept any cash. We walked back to our car.
To our great relief the car started as soon as we filled it with gasoline.
What a morning.
What I failed to mention is that we actually had a flat tire before dropping off our daughter. So running out of petrol was the cherry on the top of the cake of my day.
Getting into the car, I mentioned to my husband, “Aslam” that at least we returned safely to our car and nothing bad happened. Once again, as a couple, we made it work. Unexpectedly he smiled, “I am so happy you are always so understanding, where someone else would get upset and argue that they had to go through what we just did.”
We have been through worse, and we have overcome so much.
With a smile returning to my face, the rest of the day came together nicely.
You have to look at your blessings while you live your dreams and not let unexpected experiences ruin your plans.  The reason why I feel blessed is because have an amazing love in my life. Having a baby has not been easy for us as a couple. It has often left us feeling tired and, oh, so drained. We drifted apart by living past one another without knowing, but thankfully we saved our relationship and made it to this point …even if life needed us to climb trees and jump fences to see the good that exists between us.
I have had moments where I’ve wished with all my heart that I could turn back the hands of time and erase the bad and unexpected bumps on the road of my life, but in looking at them in hind-sight, these moments have brought me to where I am today.
Sometimes you need to realize that you have what it takes to make your dreams come true.
You need to have a little faith and some patience to believe that the support you need for your dream is coming to you as fast as it possibly can.  The dream that you are seeking is seeking you.
Life will test your commitment to your dream.  It’s testing you to see if this is something that you truly desire.
It’s helping you to run out of gas on the freeway so you can slow down and spend time with your loved ones. It’s opening up your life and allowing people you trust to care for what you love most in the world.
Being happy is a dream I’ve always wanted in my life. Life isn’t perfect, but sometimes having your car break down makes you realize what you have and that what you have is a precious gift. This gift is right in front of you–if you stop, open your eyes and see that it has been there waiting for you to notice.
This week cherish your dream moments when they appear … even if they show up as a flat tire on the side of the road. Take these moments to recognize what is working in your life, what you have to be thankful for, and what you love with all of your heart.
Know that your good is coming to you, so be happy that you are being challenged to live the dreamer’s life.
-Sue
Latest posts by Sue Faith Levy, International Speaker Dreams (Posts)
- How to Deal with Loss When you are Dreaming Big - 05/16/2013
- Dream Advice: Overcome Negative Thoughts on Your Dream Journey - 05/09/2013
- Dream Advice: Why You Should Not Give Up on Your Dreams - 05/02/2013
- Women Public Speakers: Teach Young Men to Respect Women - 04/25/2013
- Dreamer Goes to Prison to Achieve Her Dream of Motivating Women - 04/18/2013
The Dreams Are Realized in the Moments That Challenge You by 8 Women Dream, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
