Tuesday, April 5, 2016

Dream A Little ... Dream A Lot

I'll just put it out there right off the bat – I think I've been given way too many dreams for this short little life I will live. I could give you an on-going list of dreams, but I don't think that is what this post is for.

My dream is to live. My dream is to cast visions without limitation. My dream is to take action. My dream is to do my best to live purposefully and not out of reaction. My dream is to find community everywhere I go. My dream is to know who I am. My dream is to know who God is. All of these things make up the dry mix of a beautiful cake with many layers and detail.

Photo Property of Oh Honey Bakes [@ohhoneybakes]
A new friend of mine recently asked me, "If you could ask any question other than the typical small talk questions...what would ask?" The answer I gave him was that of a question I have been asked many times over the past several years: "If you had no limitations...if money, time, and all of those details were of no consequence or worry...what would you do? What would be the dream?" A persons answer to this question can say a lot about them. This summer, I was stumped as this question was asked of me. Honestly...I had put dreaming aside in 2009. "What's practical? What does "the reality" of being an adult tell me is possible?" Stupid. We weren't created to settle. We weren't created to dream and then set those dreams on fire and cast the ashes out on seas of impossibility. Whether it's a simple dream, or an extravagant one, they all have worth, they all have purpose.

Dreaming doesn't end here in the early stages of life. I pray, dear Lord, that I dream until the day I die. I pray that in every new season a new dream emerges. So this week, I've added one to the lot. This is one of those dreams that I'm not so sure about. It's one that I'm not quite sure on how it fits into this timeline of mine. If I were to write down all of my dreams you would be sure to find themes and threads. Some of these would make sense to slap down on a storyboard, but then others seem a bit disjointed. Granted, these dreams are from many different seasons and walks of life. So of course the dream of 10 year old me may not exactly coincide with the later dream of 20 year old me. Dreams take shape. Dreams come and dreams go. Dreams give purpose and motivate us to make the most of the one life we've been given.

Photo Courtesy of Noah Shaffer [@that.barefoot.dude]


Seems that this age I am living is prime dreaming time. It's a time of exploration. It's a time of question. It's a time of seeking answers and making choices. It's a time when the world seems to be an open book. That is...this age can be ALL of that...if I...or if you, let it. So dream a little or dream a lot, but I encourage the latter. Don't become overwhelmed when you do and dreams continue to be birthed like bunnies in springtime.



& with that, I leave you with the following to chew on:

Perhaps the purpose of dreaming is not to run after every dream, but to condition our minds and our spirits to be active in dreaming. You'll know which ones to chase, and I hope you will.

Self Portrait Captured By Kelli Marie 


Dreaming the Dreamers Dream,

Gabrielle