The other day I woke up, strapped on my tennis shoes, managed to get into my running capris despite already being slightly sweaty from the humidity and hooked up the dog to her leash. The minute we hit the morning air we were greeted with a heat wave that had us both reevaluating why we needed to get outside at all. But nature called, in more ways than one.
After walking the dog a bit and letting her do her business, I dropped her back upstairs and slipped back out of the house to go for a jog. That day I didn’t want to go far, but I didn’t want to really jog up and down the street either, so I opted for a bit of a zigzag. In the end, my energy built up and before I knew it I was up a giant hill and at the cemetery entrance.
Some might find it a bit weird, but I don’t mind cemeteries. I was the only one in our group to walk through the Paris cemetery last October, something I did on purpose. I couldn’t leave Paris again without going there!
The cemetery near my house here is less freaky, meaning it’s plain American with many headstones and no tiny houses on top of the graves (think New Orleans style. That’s how Paris’ is). I jogged through it, stopping every once and awhile to note who was laid to rest in certain areas and as I took another steep hill to work out my glutes, I remembered a quote from Les Brown:
“The graveyard is the richest place on earth, because it is here that you will find all the hopes and dreams that were never fulfilled, the books that were never written, the songs that were never sung, the inventions that were never shared, the cures that were never discovered, all because someone was too afraid to take that first step, keep with the problem, or determined to carry out their dream.”
Les Brown
I couldn’t help but wonder how many dreams never came to fruition for the people already in their graves. For those who crossed the ocean and were laid to rest in a foreign country, I wondered if they had come with dreams for the new land and if those dreams were fulfilled. For the women in the graves, I wondered if they had been allowed to dream and were encouraged to use their talents during their life. For the men, I wondered if they had had to work to survive or if they had been lucky enough to work in their passion.
It’s been said by many and I simply agree, this is the best time to be alive. The advances in medicine have been great, education is out there for the taking (even if it might be harder for some than others, it is still out there and much of it is free), the possibilities of working doing what you love and are passionate about are higher than ever and yet there are still people who go through life never fully stepping into the giftings they were born with, never fulfilling the dreams that they have at the back of their minds.
Having a dream doesn’t mean that you will become famous or rich, but walking in your dream typically means that you are happier and that your life is filled with meaning. More than anything I hope I can encourage you to pick up your talents, dust them off, take them out of the deep closets you left them in long ago, and start using them again. Use them in a way you never thought doable. Maybe it won’t make you any money, but it will make you happy and you will find yourself having an impact on people. And having an impact on people is influencing the world. We all have that tiny desire we sometimes entertain of making a difference in this world.
If one of your dreams or part of your dream is to write a book, I would love to help you. I’m starting up the Pencils&Lipstick Creative Writing Community in August and I would love to have you be a part of it! I can’t wait to hold brainstorming sessions on title, teach you things I’ve learned over the years and invite experts in for masterminds to talk about writing and books and publishing. The membership will become a place where we can find people to review writings and help with ideas when stuck and find encouragement to keep going when it feel hard. To write a book is a beautiful dream and with it comes a beautiful journey and I encourage you to walk that journey with others by joining the Creative Writing Community.
Don’t let your dreams go to the grave when you do. Leave your legacy behind!