I have lived a life of pre-requisites. It was a game I played in my head every second of every day for many different reasons.
- I can have a cup of coffee after I finish prepping dinner, doing laundry and paying these three bills.
- Only after I workout, can I have that chocolate-dipped macaroon that has been calling my name.
- After I finish my graduate degree, I will take some time off.
- After all three kids are in school all day, I will take time for myself.
Now I live a life of AND’s. The only thing that has changed is my ability believe that I can have it all, now. In the Sicilian dialect, there is no future tense. It took me a while to really grasp this concept since I was always projecting my life into the future to explain the current sacrifices or joys that I had earned at some point in the past through my strenuous effort.
There are many critics who look at the downsides of the Italian culture in their present tense, “La Dolce Vita” lifestyle. I am here to soak it in because I had the fast track memorized with every fiber of my being: education, job, house, family, retirement. I still have all of those things although no one here really cares where I went to college or what my future plans are. I don’t have to pass an invisible finish line before I reward myself or others. I know I have changed because I am still doing the laundry, cooking the meals, and cleaning the various houses we inhabit. But, we are traveling the world as we go about these daily activities and they have a new life, a new interest, a new allure.
This was the first journey I have ever embarked on where I skipped the pre-requisites. Dream to reality in four months. Why? Because the vision was clear and not living in the direction of this dream was not an option. As we blaze this new trail, fresh AND’s reveal themselves . . .
- We can work AND travel
- We can be active and healthy AND spend time together as a family
- We can explore the world AND stay connected to those closest to us
- We can educate ourselves AND our children
- We can dream AND shape our reality in the direction of those dreams
It is important to be open to receiving all this journey has in store for us every day. The Either – Or’s are clearly a fear based defense mechanism that have no place in the land of NOW!
