Dear George

Dear George,

I know you have dreams. Some you have expressed – others you have kept to yourself, thought about accomplishing, but thought them too far-fetched. If you express your dreams, you either have to make a move to accomplish them or admit failure. As long as your dreams are not voiced to others, they are not real. You watch others realizing “your” dreams; you read about their adventures – living vicariously through them. You can almost see, hear, and taste the experience. But you are never quite brave enough to step out of the box. What will others think? How much will it cost? What will I have to give up? How much time will it take? Is it dangerous? These are just a few of the questions that keep you in the box – the safe box. You may never experience the adventures yourself, but at least you can read about them.
I have been where you are. I wanted to stay in the safe box. But I also didn’t want someone else to live my dreams and just live vicariously through them. I used to say as I watched a travel show, “How can I get a job like that? How can I travel and write about it?” I guess the answer is to JUST DO IT! But so many people have already done it. What would make me different? Maybe it’s because the travels I am interested in are outside of the box to the ordinary person. (Even though I really am pretty ordinary – I get up, brush my teeth, exercise, eat breakfast, read my devotions, take care of my household chores, eat lunch, work in my garden, take a shower, make dinner, watch “Dark Shadows” (OK that’s not ordinary), and then go to bed.) Maybe I could even be described as boring. I get tired of the ordinary – I want to be able to talk about the extraordinary things I have experienced.
Thank goodness I have John to think outside of the box. We both want to experience the unusual and then share. John always says, “If you don’t experience things for yourself, you don’t have anything to share with others.” I want my kids and grand kids to hear about the exciting places I have been and things I have experienced. I don’t want to be a typical grandparent. I want my grandchildren to desire to do the unexpected and know it can be accomplished.
I hope as I write, you will live vicariously through my experiences. But, hopefully, that soon will not be enough. May my/our experiences encourage you to step out of your safe box into a world of excitement. My purpose is to show you that ordinary people can do extraordinary things. You are never too ordinary for an adventure. Don’t settle…..
May you live out-doors, out-loud, out-rageous, out-dreams. Just LIVE OUT!!!!!

LaNae