*
Last night, while on vacation in Hilton Head, our waiter, Michael, still with a heavy accent originally from Queens, NY, told us how he came to live on the island. “I was working in construction, and in 1991, Hilton Head was booming. After vacationing here, I packed up my stuff, moved, and did pretty well here. And, I’m still here all these years later.”
We all love these types of stories—stories of people who just decide to follow their dream. A former student of mine, Jen, just recently decided to make a move to Florida. She got a job and has left Maryland for the Sunshine State. Another former student of mine, Shane, packed up his car, Steve, and headed for California. You have to give them credit. They can visualize what they want to do and where they want to be.
We admire these types of people who just follow an impulse, dream, idea and just do it. So often we say, “When this happens, I’ll do it…” or “When I get older,” but really, the time is now, as these folks have proven is the case.
I remember reading a story in a magazine years ago about a husband and wife who were both important, high-earning Wall Street executives. They both quit their jobs, moved to a sea town in New Jersey, and opened a small store. This story has always stuck with me; they found a cute house, fixed it up, and lived happily ever after in their small town.
When you consider the rat-race of life sometimes, simplifying seems quite appealing. But the ultimate endeavor for us all is to follow our dreams, even if some people may not see or understand our own personal goals and how they relate to our dreams. If we’re lucky, like the couple I mentioned above, our dreams may coincide.
We love “follow your dreams” stories because we all wish we had the courage or the means to do it. They are our dreams, after all.
Save
