I am a dreamer. I dream big and I dream small. I love to look at catalogs and dream about the places I could go with all the outdoor gear on each of the pages. I love to watch documentaries on the National Parks, all the beautiful places and all the beautiful creatures God created. I build bee houses for my yard and then I watch the busy little bees and dream of one day having a honey bee hive or two. (My bee houses are for mason bees, leaf cutter bees, etc,…not honey bees!)
When I was married, I got in trouble for dreaming. If I so much as looked at a catalog and said, “Oh, look how cool this is!” or “Oh, aren’t these cute?”, I would abruptly be told, “You are not getting those.” I would read travel magazines and various nonfiction books on travel and dream BIG. If I mentioned my dreams, I was told, “We can’t afford that, you shouldn’t be making plans.” I wasn’t making plans, I was dreaming! It was hard being a dreamer married to a non-dreamer. I stopped dreaming.
The first few years after his exit, I was still afraid that it was wrong to dream. Then I decided to stop being afraid to dream! I began dreaming again and next thing I knew, life was good. I got a Jeep. I started hiking on my weekends off. I got a kayak ad started paddling. I met some amazing friends. I started camping and riding my bike — I started living again. Dreaming is part of healthy living!!! Without dreams, I had lost hope.
Last weekend, we went on a camping kayaking trip down the New River. We paddled 6 miles the first day to the campsite and 9 miles the second day. The campsite is only accessible by by water or a 4 mile hike. It was SO peaceful. These adventures are me living out my dreams. This last adventure really amped up my dream of getting a touring kayak.
My most recent dreams are to get a touring kayak and to get a hammock for camping. I really want to paddle in the wetlands here in North Carolina and in the Everglades. I need a touring kayak for those. <smile> I may never get one, but I sat in some this weekend as I tested a few out. I love being outdoors. I love seeing nature in all of God’s glory. I feel at peace when I am outdoors. I also dream of paddling in Alaska one day, too.
I don’t have dreams of going to Europe or out of the country. I don’t dream of owning a mansion or a Porsche. I just want to hike, camp, cycle, and paddle.I want to go back to Yellowstone to camp, paddle, ride and hike. I want to go back to the Grand Canyon and do the same. I want to hike the Appalachain Trail. I want to see a Roseate Spoonbill I missed on our 15 mile cycle in the Everglades. I know there had to be one somewhere and I just missed it.
So back to that touring kayak – I’m dreaming of a boat at least 14ft long. Maybe the Carolina 14 or a Tsunami — I’m still creating my dream. It’s fun to dream! I’ve learned my lesson and all never allow anyone to stop me from dreaming ever again. So many dreams………. where will they take me next?
My Little Red Bike 