Looking Up or Looking Down

This is a continuation of a blog below titled "The Power of a Dream and a Vision"

"One person working toward a dream is worth 99 people just working. - Lani Kraus, writer

We've all worked with people who just show up to fill space. Uninspired and stuck going through the motions, they pick up a paycheck on Monday and wait for Friday. Some are just killing time until retirement. Maybe you even find yourself in this mindset. Not a very satisfying way to spend your days is it? Sounds like an easy life--except that in life, retirement can be permanent and unexpected. In your life, are you actively heading straight for your goals, or are you puttering around vaguely? Nothing is wrong with hard work; determination and elbow grease are what make the best dreams possible. But it's interesting that most work makes us look downward, while dreams lift our eyes to the sky. While you're keeping that nose to the grindstone, make sure you keep your head up to see where you're going." sparkpeople healthy reflections

My new outlook on life is everything is a positive in my life. I am the one calling the shots and making the decisions for my better good. I can choose how to view what is happening around me. I can look forward and ask, 'If I had all the time and money in the world, what would I like to do?" My answers may seem impossible in the here and now, but I can look for little aspects of what I want and start incorporating it into today. How can I love what is right now? How can I ask the Universe for what I'd like in my life?

Two major changes have taken place. When I finished my masters degree in reading, I wasn't sure I wanted to leave the classroom to be a reading specialist. I thought I wanted to use my new knowledge in my own classroom, or was that "fear of change" talking? The decision soon was made for me when the superintendent of the school system placed me into a reading specialist job in my school. I could gripe and moan about the change, like some other teachers were doing about other changes that were happening or I could embrace it as the wisdom of the Universe coming into play. I choose to see it as the next step in my growth that was offered up by a higher source.

Here is another example of looking up. While I was moving through my grief and loss (long story of losing both parents and my marriage) over the last 4 years, I completed my masters degree. My coach friends started asking, "How are you going to celebrate this accomplishment?" My standard procedure would be no graduation, party or special reward. I was supposed to finish after all. That's what I'd been taught to do. Not to reward myself for doing what I was supposed to.

So first I said , "Well, I've always wanted to take a cruise, but going alone isn't economical." "What do you really want to do?", my friends asked.
"Go to Hawaii, but you're supposed to go there with a lover or a spouse." None of those were handy. But the more I entertained the idea that this could be a reality, things stated to fall into place.

An old best friend in California, retired and got travel money as part of her package. Without batting an eye lash, I quipped, "Want to go to Hawaii with me?" Yadda yadda yadda.....and guess what?! A few e-mails and phone calls back and forth & I am flying out there Tuesday! A week on the Big Island and a week in CA visiting dear friends who've seen me through thick and thin.

Look up--dream big--find ways to make big happen or bring little bits of big into your everyday life and experience the pleasure of a life that nurtures you. The unique and special you that contributes something no one else can to the Universe. The power of dreaming big, embracing what is as a chance for growth, and framing every thought in a positive vein is my commitment to myself in the here and now.