A inspiring credo (I am not sure what else to call it) for an upcoming project written by my good friend Paul – he is a part time scribe, full-time lawyer and a wonderful talent.
My introduction can’t do it justice, so jump into it now!
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In order to move forward we have to want something. But want alone is not enough. I can look up at the mountain I see before me and think “I want to climb it but it is too high” or “I will never reach the top”. So we leave behind the dream we have held in our heart to walk another path. One we know will not draw our breath or challenge and inspire us. We keep on walking in our lives, only stopping on those rare occasions to look back at the great mountain we have left behind.
And then one day we wake up and realise we can no longer see the mountain’s peak or marvel at its majesty. But we tell ourselves we are serious people and instead of mourning what is lost we chastise ourselves for our foolish thoughts, saying “you could never have done it anyway” or “the task was too big and you are too small”. We distract ourselves with the business of everyday life, losing ourselves in its chores and forgetting our dreams.
That is where I am at today. Standing at the foot of that great mountain staring up at what I am certain to be the impossible. And I know I should take conventions hand, turn my back on all that is beyond me, and do the sensible thing. But I cannot silence that small voice inside me that says “I will not cower from my dreams, I will not walk the path more traveled, the one I know safe and secure and expected of me. No, today I will climb the mountains of my life and should I fail or succeed I will take comfort in the knowledge that today above all others I will have lived my dream.”
And as I look out from the midst of this great battle, bruised and bloodied and gasping for air, I hear only the voices of those who doubted me, those who warned me against taking such foolhardy risks. I hear their voices as my heart pounds in exaltation and it serves only to push me further … to make me cry out “I have but one life to live and I have chosen to live it… You can no longer walk upon my dreams… I ask nothing more of you than this… leave me alone to my journey… let me live!’
