What are your dreams?

If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching,
Or cool one pain,
Or help one fainting robin
Unto his nest again,
I shall not live in vain.

-Emily Dickinson

I have lots of dreams. I dream strange things at night; I daydream many times throughout the day (often in class) and I sometimes imagine what I want my life to look like 20 years from now. There are several things I would love to be doing - but I must realize that in 20 years, I'll be 41. Can that be possible? There will be things I cannot do anymore. So I must do them now.

If I had the resources, here is what I would be doing right now:

1. Taking ballet lessons
2. Going horseback riding
3. Painting
4. Driving/Camping through the Midwest/Western U.S.
5. Ice skating
6. Entertaining on the weekends
7. Flying to Europe
8. Taking a history class
9. Taking part in a theatrical production - in acting/costume design/directing, etc.
10. Decorating my house with themed rooms - Old World living room, Cherry and black in the kitchen, and a library complete with roaring fire in the fireplace and an overstuffed armchair.

I can at least do some of these right now - the entertaining on the weekends, flying to Europe (in just 6 weeks!), and finding ways to learn about history without having to pay for a class.

It's weird to think that my life is just starting - highschool and college aren't really an ending to anything but childhood - and they are also the beginnings of adulthood. I don't regret leaving behind my highschool years...and I say goodbye to my college years next semester. I'll be glad to be done with this phase. I'm happy to move on.

I know what part of my life will [potentially] look like - God-willing, I'll have my husband beside me for the next 50+ years. We might have kids eventually, and we'll hopefully be involved in some sort of ministry.

What else will I do with my life?

Time will tell, I suppose.

When it's all been said and done, though, I hope that I'll have accomplished something artistic that will continue to touch people's souls long after I am gone.

I guess it's the Autumnal season that makes me so nostalgic.

The wind is blowing through the park and the sun is shining...the leaves are finally turning, and the sky is blue. It is a beautiful day. I hope yours is just as lovely.

What are your dreams for the future?