Another weekend come and gone. I am always so excited for the weekend to get here only to spend it entirely camped out in front of my computer or my XBOX or sleeping in to make up for my self-destructive weekly habits. Sometimes it seems I spend my whole life looking forward to being disappointed.
But don't we all? We look forward to movie releases, book releases, game launches, TV Shows, holidays, vacations, family events, seasons, weekends, classes, trips, finishing things, starting things, buying things, meeting people, being rid of people, and accomplishing something.
Look at how much life we miss out on in the meantime! Not to mention many of those activities end up being less exciting or fulfilling than we imagined. But some of them do, some of them are completely fulfilling, and these always involve great loves or great people.
By all means look forward to that writing class in which you will be enriched by other people's passions or look forward to that turkey dinner with the family where your love banks will be recharged. Look forward to making music or poetry or playing sports; look forward to whatever you are passionate about.
But please don't just look forward to them, actually do them. Are you looking forward to seeing your sister next month? Call her! Are you looking forward to learning guitar? Play! Are you looking forward to meeting someone? Go out and look (or talk)! Are you looking forward to being in shape? Work out!
That is sometimes hard enough to do for the little things but what about the giant ones like pursuing your dreams, taking risks, and trying something new?
This concept has played in the lives of generations of people. Most of us are held back because we are afraid of failure and rejection. We have the misconception that if we do not succeed immediately we are failures and that is somehow a bad thing. I've got news for you; humans are fail machines. We are designed to fail at something until we get it right. If you are not failing at something new, then you are doing it wrong. Sure you learn a bit from success, but you learn so much more from failure.
Whatever you do, don't hide at home behind your hopes and dreams, venture forth and fail!
Every word you say is true. Incidentally, I'm starting my first guitar lesson this Wednesday. I try to work my way through my never-ending To Do list. :)
ReplyDeleteI hope your guitar lessons are a blast! I'm laxing on my own practice so it won't take you long to be more proficient than I am. Not that that is hard to achieve since I basically am totally unproficient. Actually, I'm going to pick up a used amp next week and start up again. It's on!
ReplyDeleteHey, I just read your comment here. So you play guitar? My plan was to try it out that one time and then decide to buy a guitar. I haven't even researched how much it would cost or anything. I acted on impulse. Maybe someday!
ReplyDeletep.s. Thanks for offering to burn me DVDs. I'd like that if you get a chance. :) I might buy a guitar soon.
p.s. I left you a comment on my "London Poetry Slam" post.
ReplyDeleteI don't so much play guitar as am making feeble attempts to teach myself on a borrowed electric. I think you can get a decent acoustic used for a couple hundred dollars, or less if you just want something to start on.
ReplyDeleteI'll see if I can't get you a DVD or two for Monday!