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| Lake LaAquana State Park, IL by Maria Reber |
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When I was a boy I used to imagine myself on a quest for hidden treasures. Any map would serve as the guide to finding the buried loot that I was sure laid tucked away in the neighborhood. It was only a matter of following the cryptic directions laid out on the paper, a little digging, breaking open the buried chest and I was sure there would be plenty of treasure for all to share in.
Unfortunately my searches were always discouraged and interrupted by those pirate scoundrels I also called my brothers. They would interfere with my searches, mark up my maps and send me off on one dead end after another. I could swear those rascally pirates wanted to keep the loot hidden away so that they could have it for themselves.
I abandoned those enthusiastic searches for the neighborhood bounty long ago, however, every once in a while the memory of those younger days come back into view. Usually this occurs when I’m searching again for answers to life’s meaning and what the next path I journey may lead to. The recollections do bring a smile to the face, however, they hold so much more than just a metaphor to the conscious seeking that continues as we age.
Somewhere along life’s path we discover that it really is an adventure. We then give ourselves permission to try on new ideas, thoughts, beliefs and interests that catch our attention. Suddenly, we begin to realize that the scallywags in our life are the beliefs we hold within. I know you’ve experienced them. They are the ones that hold us hostage to the job we dislike, that map of life that keeps us on a dull course as opposed to setting sail into the direction of our dreams. Too often we succumb to the galley instead of venturing onto the island of our dreams.
For years I too stayed upon the sea of life, moving through the tempests, tossing upon the waves and staying true to the course that I set sail upon a few decades ago. After all, that has always seemed and I had always believed that that it was the safest way to go. Yet, this belief was limiting me from being who I am.
We buy into and create beliefs that at that moment serve us well. Then as we sail on the sea of life they limit our ruder and our sail. We find that we cannot turn with the wind of our evolving interests or the direction of our dreams. These self-created beliefs limit us from steering into the current of our life’s passion and keep us from discover the treasures buried within our own hearts.
Simple it seems to make such a course change and to sail with the wind within our sails. Well, it is as simple and as easy as you want to believe. Still, it’s not the changing of our beliefs about ourselves, others and how life is to flow that holds us back the most. It is the fear of changing that becomes the rouge pirate in our mind.
We succumb to the perceived sword of our fears and trudge ever on our way. Too afraid to take a look at how false fear’s reality is. Instead we conjure up large sailing ships with cannons poised to sink us, when they really don’t exist. There are no man-of-war’s trying to take your heart’s bounty away! Only the fears that flare from limiting beliefs are keeping your dreams at bay.
As a boy, I understood that there was nothing I couldn’t do. It was the beliefs that I created and adapted along life’s sailing that limited my way. Each day you have an opportunity to discover the treasure within your heart; the passions, talents and the dreams of the life you want to create. Seize the stern turn with the wind, set a new course, create your own map and begin to follow your dreams.
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