Lessons
learned this week:
Pausing and reflecting on what I would like my life to look
like when I am laying on my death bed, has been a profound experience for
me. I was reassured that I am on the
right path to accomplish the things I would like to accomplish in my life. Also, considering a bucket list was a
difficult task, but it was also profound as I was able to discover that there
are many things I want to do with my life that I did not, to this point, slow
down and acknowledge. Having never
acknowledged them, I think I might have gotten to the last day of my life and
looked back with regrets.
In particular, I contemplated what joy I would get from having
the privilege of directing a large production.
After submitting that assignment, the very next day, I as approached by
my Stake Music Chairperson who invited me to be the director of a large musical
fireside to be held in April. Had I not
just contemplated it the day before, I might have talked myself out of it, not
truly contemplating the importance it will play in my life. I will be excited in April to check that item
off the list.
In this course, I look forward to focusing carefully at the
needed steps I must take, in order to reach many goals that are not necessary
for life, but for which I will be sure to feel as though I really lived, rather
than simply existed.
A couple
of concepts and quotes that stood out to me this week from the readings and
videos:
“It would be a shame to wander aimlessly through a journey we
will all only take once.” Jeff Sandefer, Stars and Steppingsones: Some Choices
Only Come Around Once
The same process we would use to find our spiritual gifts, we
must use to find our callings in life.
Having a sense of our gifts = “inoculation against the vicissitudes of
the job market.” When you find your
calling, your work will be bliss. Don’t
expect deep meaning without paying the price for it. (Jeffrey A. Thompson, What is Your Calling in
Life?, BYU Speeches)
“Wait long enough and people will surprise and impress
you. When you are pissed off at somebody
and you’re angry at them, you just haven’t given them enough time.” Randy
Pausche’s Last Lecture (I needed this lesson this week, though it doesn’t directly
apply to the content of the lesson this week.)
(My thought, this may also be true for ourselves.)
Questions/Answers
for Assignment:
- Why do you think Randy Pausch was able to achieve so many of his childhood dreams?
- It seems evident to me that the dreams were achievable, he kept them at the forefront of his mind, and he determined that he could.
- Do you feel that dreaming is important? Why or why not?
- It is important to dream. The scriptures tell us that we are agents unto ourselves, free “to act for themselves and not to be acted upon.” (2 Nephi 2:26) By dreaming, we set a vision for our lives. Identifying those dreams allows us to set a course, to take control of our lives and to go out and get what we want.
- Discuss at least one of your childhood dreams. Explain why you believe you can or cannot achieve this dream.
- As a child I wanted to be a lawyer. I think that what enticed me was the following:
- The ability to make a case through logic and reason
- The ability to help other people
- The ability to stand for what is right
- The opportunity to participate in public speaking, which would end in, hopefully, doing good for my community.
- I did not pursue this career because it was not consistent with other dreams I had that took priority (my number one goal as a child was to be a mother, nothing else really mattered). I see now as an adult that the reasoning behind the why of this dream has been made manifest in my other pursuits. In my adult dreams, the same reasons are behind my new dreams. I am pursuing those new dreams and I believe I will achieve them because, first and foremost, it is the Lord’s will for my life. I’m certain of it. And if it is His will, he will give me the drive and the passion to make it happen. I am certain of that, as well.
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