Posts tagged goals
“”Since I started my big round the world trip a few weeks back, I’ve heard the same exclamation from several people: “Wow, you’re really doing it!”
My initial, unspoken reaction is usually along the lines of, “Well, yeah. I said I was going to. What did you expect?”
What I’ve come to realize though is that not many people actually do follow through and walk their big dream talk. The fact that I’m doing just that doesn’t make me feel especially proud or exceptional. Rather, it makes me feel sad. Because what’s our word worth if most of us don’t even follow through on our biggest dreams? Making them real should be of the utmost importance to us, but it seems we let them slip away much too easily.
Checking In On Your Big, Ridiculous Goals: Are You Walking Your Talk?
It’s incredibly sad how many times I’ve had this same reaction, whether it was after my Trans-Siberian trip, or when I went to Iceland on my birthday, or even now when I went to Morocco for three days for the hell of it. Or even the fact that I’ve been freelance for almost a year now and haven’t starved to death (or haven’t even had to move out of my apartment).
It’s not that hard, people. Seriously.
On That Moment
12:21 am last night. That’s when it came, that moment. It comes more or less weekly, sometimes more, sometimes less, but always when you’re alone. No television, no spouse, no distractions in your headphones. The bed is the best place - that, or the shower. But it’s always when you have just let your guard down, whether scrubbing routinely or just about to drift away.
That moment, when just for a split second, you know you’re not going to make it.
It takes different forms for different people, most more mundane. A housewife knows they’ll run out of money. A father sees his children taken away. A soldier sees the bullet that will sail straight for him. And I see failure and mediocrity, of being not a late bloomer like I always thought, but a non-bloomer.
Just for that moment, you know, know it’s not worth it, that every effort you make is a waste. But then it’s over, and reason takes over, and you see the road ahead with your dreams fulfilled, or at least a damn good effort made towards them. And luckily, this feeling lasts longer.
Six by 30
I’ve barely posted recently as freelance translation and proofreading work has kept me incredibly busy, which is a good thing considering that over the years I’ve grown accustomed to purchasing and consuming food, and would like to continue that habit. However, while I credit this mad rush that began the second I left my previous job on a general desire to wrap everything up by the end of the year as well as sheer luck, hopefully come January I’ll have the time to develop a regular posting habit as well.
Until then, I’ll just post my new goal that, as most of the crazy ideas I usually end up accomplishing begin (see: Iceland), came to me mid-conversation and completely out of the blue. By the time I’m 30, I want to have set foot on all of the continents except Antarctica. It seems poetic given that I have two years and two continents to go; I’ve already travelled to North America and Europe (obviously), as well as Asia and Australia. All that remain are Africa (totally doable) and South America, which will be the trickiest to accomplish given sheer distance. Luckily, I’ve got plenty of time to plan, and if the money keeps coming in, I might end up riding a motorcycle through the Argentinian plains sooner than I expected (note to self: learn how to ride a motorcycle first).
Granted, by the time I die I would absolutely love to visit Antarctica as well, but considering that the logistical planning and necessary funding is exponentially higher, that one might have to wait awhile.
