Living the Dream?

Are you living the dream?

The phrase seems to get thrown around as if real life can be everything we've dreamed of but I'll be honest, I'm not living the dream nor do I think I ever will.  Something in adulthood, motherhood in particular, has given me the sense that we need to live our own reality, working toward our goals not our dreams.

My reality is different today than it was 5 years, 1 year, even 1 week ago. I've found that while I do have goals and aspirations its important to not confuse those with dreams. I can take active steps in my day to day life to slowly and persistently work toward achieving my goals. I can work on transforming myself into more of the person I aspire to be. But the things that I classify as dreams, the things that occasionally cause me to pause and sigh longingly -- If I focus on them instead of my current life I miss out and I start to feel bad or downtrodden. 

Much like social media can distort our perceptions of reality, letting ourselves dwell on these, often unrealistic, dreams can steal away the joy we might experience if we instead focused on our reality.

     I dream of having an immaculate house but clean and livable where kids help put away laundry and board games are strewn about will have to do.

     I dream of being able to pack up and travel with minimal planning but relish instead taking staycations and exploring the area we live in.

     I dream of being able to sleep-in, drink my coffee extra-hot and sit quietly in my PJs and read a book on Saturday morning but grocery shopping alone is now my guilty pleasure.

     I dream of running a half-marathon and marathon PR but for now I run slow and steady and admire the fall foliage that I would miss if I only focused on my pace.

Don't get me wrong, I can't let the kids trash the house because it's still my job to teach them responsibility and stewardship but I have to, as hard as it is, let go of my own crazy standards. I have to focus on living my ideals and values (patience, courage, responsibility, kindness) and let those translate into material gains.

Have goals, have aspirations, work toward them with persistence and dedication but leave the dreaming to nighttime and wake up ready to be present in your day!