Reach for the stars

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I don't know of anyone alive today, who hasn't had something they truly desire.  We all have dreams, most everyone has aspirations, and there are even a few of you who have visions of doing something extraordinary.  I'm one who believes in going after everything in life.  There is a quote that I have used in quite a few of my books, and I've even used it in my blog, so maybe it's time to dust it off and use it again.  "I would rather attempt something great an fail, then attempt nothing at all and succeed." 

Now before anyone goes about trying to split hairs, I'm not saying that failure is an acceptable alternative to success.  We will all fail from time to time, but if you are willing to give it a second, and maybe even a third try at something, eventually you are going to find success.  What the quote is saying is that don't sit back on your laurels.  There's nothing wrong with reaching for the stars.  It doesn't matter how big or how small your goals might be, how ornate or far fetched the dream, going after what is in your heart is in fact reaching up to the universe and grabbing a star with both hands.

I have been around people who are so fearful of failure that they never get into the race.  I don't discount the fact that there are times when most of us have had doubts about something.  It might be something we are thinking about trying, it might be as insignificant as who am I going to ask to the company party.  Fear and doubt are two things that will stop any dream, no matter how big or how small the dream is.

When you look at the design of the universe, and your place in the ever expanding universe, if you cannot see that you are connected to all things, then you are never going to fully understand your capabilities, nor will you ever fully walk in those things you were intended to walk in.  How many times have you run an idea by someone only to have that someone crap all over it, or simply tell you why it could never happen the way you imagine it?  How many times have you kept silent about something you wanted to do simply because you didn't want to deal with the ridicule that was sure to follow by those who you count as dear friends?  How many times have you cried out in the night for some relief because you wanted something so desperately and yet you hadn't yet figured out a way to get it?  I will tell you that I have been victim to each of these scenarios.

We are all going to face hurdles in life.  Some we can simply jump over, while others may take a little more maneuvering to get around.  The key is to keep moving, and never give up.  Now there will be days when you simply haven't got anything else to give.  You've been beat up so much, and fought for so long, that you simply have nothing more in you.  If you are at this point don't fear, you are not alone.  There's nothing wrong with taking a step back, taking a deep breath, and then just resting.  You can only charge forward for so long before you have to take a break.  There is no shame in taking a breather every now and again.  I have a theory.  We've all been around those people who are constantly striving for something.  They never stop and they make sure that everyone around them knows that they never stop.  They thrive off the adrenalin rush but here is their fatal flaw:  they don't know the real them.  The person they think they are is the person that was fabricated by others.  It was trying to fit into what others expected, and not necessarily what they wanted.  I've been there, and sooner or later you are going to discover that this isn't a place you want to occupy for very long.

Reaching for the stars is not a race, and it's not a contest to see who has the bigger vision or the grandest dream.  Reaching for the stars is nothing more then accepting what you know to be truth, what you know to be in your heart, and being open to where ever that takes you. It doesn't matter what your dream is, what matters is that it is your dream.  Don't fall into the trap that so many before you have fallen into.  Too many people measure their dreams against other people's dreams.  If someone has done something amazing there is always someone who will try to out do them.  No one will ever be able to accomplish the things you were intended to accomplish in the way that you were intended to accomplish them.  You don't have to measure up to anyone else, your dreams don't have to measure up to anyone else.  There is not a yard stick to measure what you do verses someone else. If you will simply follow your own dream, then you will eventually get to the place that was designed for you the moment you entered this mortal plane.

Reaching for the stars is something we should all be doing.  When you stop going after those things that you truly believe in, you stop living.  When you give up on your dreams, you slowly begin to die.  If you will always go after those things that mean the most to you, you will always be young, you will always be alive, and you will always, always, be the person that the rest of the world needs you to be.  If you haven't already, start reaching for the stars.  Your life will change, the lives of those around you will change, and then that is the time when life really begins to be what it was always intended to be:  joyful, harmonious, and filled with laughter and oh so full of love.