The Wayside

After finishing my last project I realized many things in my life have fallen by the wayside.  But then I thought, "where exactly is the wayside and what collects there?"

If my life is any gauge, the wayside must be littered with good intentions and great opprotunities, not to mention some frivolous time wasters and bad habits.

So I ask again, where is the wayside, what exactly falls by the wayside, and how do I get it back from the wayside?

I firmly believe "the wayside" is where "somebody else" lives and works with "other people" while they wait for "someday."  I mean let's think about it...  How many times have you heard phrases like, "Someday I will go on that trip?" or "Other people get to do stuff like that, not me." or even better, "Somebody else will take care of that?"  It seems all of these thoughts imply hopes and dreams put by the wayside. Thus I prove my point.

So let's identify Somebody Else.  Who is Somebody Else? I am guessing he/she is an amazing person with talents I am too afraid to develop.  He/she can play the piano while baking a cake, balancing on a ball, juggling a fish, reading a book, being a good parent, and that is not all, no that is not all.  Somebody Else also takes care of all of the things I don't want to do myself, such as clean up messes, fight for beliefs I am afraid to stand up for, defend the weak and defenseless and last but not least, go on a diet.

In short, Somebody Else is the person who does the things I am afraid to do.

Who are Other People?  What makes them different than me? I think Other People are people who have thoughts and dreams I don't understand, or opprotunities I can't grab for myself.  Other people do things I don't feel worthy of, don't feel I deserve, or (horror) I don't agree with.  We speak of Other People with either reverence, or with disdain.  Other People are different than us.  They represent all we wish we had, or are glad we are not.

In short, Other People have the things we don't have or don't want.

When is Someday? Is it listed on the calendar? Can I plan for it or expect the day off to commemorate it? I think Someday is that magical time when Other People do things we want to do.  Someday is when we take the trip around the world. Someday is when we are financially secure.  Someday is when the kids are grown and the house is paid off.  Someday is when we slow down and smell the roses.  Someday is when all the current problems disappear and we can relax. I am sure Somebody Else is living in Someday right now, but not me.

In short, Someday is the future time when all our dreams come true.

The wayside seems to be a bit crowded.  If all of those Other People are there with Somebody Else, and they are living the dreams of Someday...wow, I am missing out.

I think the real question is how do we pull our dreams out of the abyss known as "the wayside" and get them back into our lives?  I am fine leaving my habits by the wayside, but I would rather keep my dreams and goals.  While I am happy for the Other People who do exciting things, I would rather it be me.

In coming weeks we will delve into keeping hold of our dreams and overcoming the trap of Someday.  Until then I will start digging through the "wayside" to see if I can find a few things I dropped, things like a clean house and folded laundry. sigh