Dream big but stay tethered to reality.

One man's daydreaming is another man's day. ~Grey E. Livingston
I feel I was always daydreaming, and I was always distracted. ~Kathryn Lasky
Realty is for people who can't do drugs. ~Written on a bathroom wall
Sometimes I see someone living my dream but it's not me and I wonder how that happened. ~Maxie Lee

Sometimes we lie to our kids.  We tell them that they can be, do, have anything they want if they dream big and work hard.  In my era, parents told kid they could even become the president of the United States.  Think about it. We will soon elect our 44th president since 1789. And how many kids are there? Certainly any kid could become president, but maybe we should help them to shoot towards a more realistic goal.

Reality can be harsh.  Even if we dream, work, pray, and believe, it still doesn't always work out. As an artist with a very active imagination, I dream a lot. I also have faith, and I pray and believe. Then crash to the earth. There are times that inspirational quotes (which I love) and positive thinking are not enough. My heart still gets broken.

So what do we tell our kids? ourselves? those who have crashed? What is the truth we need to know? 

Island of Dreams Acrylic 8 x 10

You are unique. Even though you share the same DNA with others past and present, no one has the exact same markers as you do, even if you are a twin. There never has ever been anyone exactly like you nor will there ever be.  You hold a special place in the universe. Be yourself--learn who that is and be it.  “You are the only you God made... God made you and broke the mold.” ~ Max Lucado

Think positive.  It doesn't matter if the glass is half empty or half full as long as you pay the water bill and can easily refill it.  We are surrounded with negativity, despair and painful experiences, and how we get through stuff is what energy we want to apply to the situations --negative or positive. This is not denying reality-- it is choosing how we are going to react to it. “Believing in negative thoughts is the single greatest obstruction to success.” ~ Charles F. Glassman

Count your blessings. While reality can be harsh, it also showers us with wonderful  things. Focusing on what we don't have only keeps us in dire need.  Choosing to look at the good opens us up to possibilities and possessions we had never before considered. "Better to lose count naming your blessings than to lose your blessings to counting your troubles."  ~Maltie Babcock.

Be kind. Treat people how we want to be treated, with a ready smile, kind words and acts of service. No, our kindness is not always automatically returned to us; in fact it sometimes generate hatefulness, but be kind anyway.  Because most folks do respond positively to kindness.  And be kind to yourself.  ~"No act of kindness is ever wasted." Aesop

Believe in a Higher Power.  

Forgive