{"id":6716,"date":"2016-01-11T06:46:38","date_gmt":"2016-01-11T12:46:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.handsfreemama.com\/?p=6716"},"modified":"2016-01-15T07:53:29","modified_gmt":"2016-01-15T13:53:29","slug":"one-long-overdue-question-and-a-sky-of-possibilities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.handsfreemama.com\/2016\/01\/11\/one-long-overdue-question-and-a-sky-of-possibilities\/","title":{"rendered":"One Long, Overdue Question and a Sky of Possibilities"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"dreamer\"<\/a>\u201cFor all the heartbreak dreamers waiting for the light
\n<\/em>Looking for just one reason to get through the night
\n<\/em>Every long lost believer caught in the fight
\n<\/em>All the heartbreak dreamers gonna be alright
\n<\/em>Everybody sing.\u201d
\n<\/em>\u2013 Mat Kearney, Heartbreak Dreamer<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Several months ago my daughter Avery and her classmates were presented with a surprise Chick-fil-A lunch by an author friend<\/a> of mine who deeply appreciates her Noticer<\/a> existence and firefly light<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On the day of the celebration, the author had prepared a special note for Avery\u2019s teacher to read out loud. The author explained the reason for the party as this:<\/p>\n

\u201cDear Avery, I hope you and your classmates enjoy this special treat. It\u2019s my way of honoring you and saying \u2018thank you\u2019 for all you\u2019ve done to inspire so many (including me) just by being who you are – a light who shines from within and a Noticer. I also hope you appreciate just how incredible and how beautiful those two \u2018invisible\u2019 gifts are and that you will never stop being you.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As those words were read, the expression on my child\u2019s face was nearly indescribable, but I will try. Beyond an enormous smile that could not be contained was equal parts joy … certainty \u2026 clarity \u2026 relief \u2026 peace \u2026 and fire. Oh yes, behind Avery\u2019s little pair of eyeglasses was a fiery determination I\u2019d never seen before. And above Avery\u2019s head, the Sky of Possibilities<\/em> opened up. For a brief moment I was a mind reader, feeling quite certain what she was thinking: I am somebody, and I have a gift worthy of sharing.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"DSC_0711\"<\/a><\/p>\n

One week later, Avery began writing music; I am talking real songs, real chords, and soul-stirring lyrics that might be heard on the radio today. Coincidence? I think not. The gift of affirmation is mighty powerful—it has the power to become belief, inspiration, and courage when given at a pivotal time in a person\u2019s life.<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

I knew something had really ignited in Avery\u2019s heart when this sometimes shy child asked her big sister to make her a YouTube channel. Avery called it \u201cTheHappyGirl2006<\/a>\u201d and wanted the world to hear her songs.<\/p>\n

Shortly after the channel had been up and running, I received a message from someone who was deeply moved by one of Avery\u2019s original songs. This woman said she\u2019d gained indescribable strength from the lyrics of \u201cOh My Soul<\/a>\u201d. In addition, she used Avery\u2019s video to encourage her four-year-old daughter\u2014a budding ukulele player just as Avery had once been. The woman added that one morning she could not get Avery\u2019s song out of her head and was happily singing it. Her daughter said, \u201cHey, what song is that? Is that Avery\u2019s song?\u201d<\/p>\n

Knowing only very catchy tunes get stuck in one\u2019s head, I excitedly relayed the story to Avery. And there it was again\u2014that glorious expression of joy … certainty \u2026 clarity \u2026 relief \u2026 peace \u2026 and fiery determination shining brighter than her smile. The sky above Avery\u2019s head opened up. The words, \u201cIt is possible<\/em>,\u201d were written in big, bold letters.<\/p>\n

\"sky\"<\/a><\/p>\n

My immediate thought was how much I wished every child could receive such powerful affirmation for something they do well or love to do. But then, just as quickly, I thought of you and that little child inside you that once dreamed big, larger-than-life dreams. I hope and pray she or he still does.<\/strong><\/p>\n

For some reason\u2014maybe a million\u2014that dream never made it to fruition. Perhaps no one said, \u201cYes, you can.\u201d Perhaps no one said, \u201cI believe in you.\u201d Perhaps you were never really sure what made your heart come alive\u2014and if you did, perhaps life got in the way. Maybe doubt and fear overpowered that little voice pleading you to step out on faith. Perhaps life\u2019s choices and circumstances have simply brought you to where you are now, the dreamer child within you nearly silent.<\/p>\n

But not gone. No, not gone.<\/p>\n

I read your private messages. I read your public comments. And through your words, I see you. I see that little girl or boy who once dreamed of igniting the passion of the heart\u2014the spark that\u2019s felt when you\u2019re doing something that makes your heart come alive.<\/p>\n

My little dreamer girl still lives inside me. She\u2019s eight years old, a notebook-filler who loves nothing more than to write stories for hours and hours. But when it came time to choose her career path, she chose teaching. To be honest, she didn\u2019t think she was good enough to become an author. For ten years that dreamer girl taught special needs children for long hours each day so there was no time to write. That left her with an unsettling feeling, like something was missing, like she wasn't using a vital part of her body, like part of her soul had fallen asleep. But there was no time in the day to shake it awake. Whenever her heart would ache to write, she\u2019d tell herself it was too late; she\u2019d chosen her path.<\/p>\n

At one point, the little dreamer started a tiny business called, \u201cIt\u2019s a Personal Thing<\/em>,\u201d where she wrote custom poetry for individuals to gift their loved ones in times of celebration and sorrow. Her business never took off, but she saw the way people cried when they read her words. Her soul stirred each time someone said, \u201cHow did you manage to say the things on my heart I could not say?\u201d The dreamer girl prayed for a way to use her God-given writing gift to help others while still making a living. For five years, she prayed about this writing dream while keeping a small notebook with her at all times. She wrote down hundreds of ideas. Most of them were not-so-good ideas. But it only took one good idea.<\/p>\n

Around the time she had one good idea, she was reading Patti\u2019s Digh\u2019s inspiring book called Life is a Verb<\/a><\/em>. It said:<\/p>\n

\u201cEarly in her career Toni Morrison worked at Random House publishers. One day her head exploded just as mine had, and she started her list of to-do items. She wrote pages and pages of things that she must do. Faced with the long list, she sat and looked at it for a long while, finally asking herself one question: What is it I must do or I shall die?<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>After answering that question, there were only two things left on her to-do list: 1) Be a mother to her children. 2) Write.\u201d <\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

When the little dreamer girl read that part of the book, the sky opened up. In big, bold letters above her head it said, \u201cIt is possible<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"possibilities\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Because that little girl, who was now almost forty years old, knew there were only two things she must do before she left this earth. The first was to truly know<\/em> her children and spouse by being a constant presence and source of love and support in their lives. The other was to write. Write. Write. Her heart screamed, \u201cIt\u2019s time.\u201d<\/p>\n

In order to develop her writing gift, as well as her dream, she needed time to write. With two young children, there was little time, so she gave up television. She quickly learned that in the time she could watch a 30-minute show, she could easily write 500 to 1000 words. Her stories began to form before her eyes. She quietly shared them with trusted friends and family who encouraged her to share them more widely.<\/p>\n

That little girl kept writing. She also asked lots of questions and researched extensively to learn as much as she could about fulfilling her writing dream. Most days she was excited and hopeful, but some days she was doubtful and teary. She earned little money and many rejections. Once her words were public, there were attacks on her writing, her mothering, and her self-esteem.<\/p>\n

But yet, she felt successful.<\/p>\n

Why? Because her measure of success was this: To touch ONE<\/em><\/strong> life with each story she wrote.<\/p>\n

It is still her goal today, two published books later<\/a>, as she writes this very piece you are reading.<\/p>\n

\"writing\"<\/a><\/p>\n

My friends, each time someone on the receiving end of one of my written lifelines says, \u201cYour words helped me today,\u201d the little dreamer girl inside me jumps for joy. \u201cPlease keep writing,\u201d you say, and I see the writing in the sky: It is possible.<\/em><\/p>\n

Each time I hear my child strumming away on her guitar, I pass that encouragement on to her.<\/p>\n

\u201cKeep singing,\u201d I urge with every fiber in my body, \u201cPlease don't ever stop singing.\u201d<\/p>\n

And now it is your turn. Today I am looking into your eyes. Imagine my hands in yours as I speak these words to you:<\/p>\n

\"DSC_0086<\/a><\/p>\n

What is your dream, precious child?<\/em><\/p>\n

What makes your heart come alive? <\/em><\/p>\n

Write it.
\nSay it.
\nScream it.
\nWhisper it.
\nPray it.
\nBelieve it.<\/p>\n

What is your dream, little dreamer?<\/em><\/p>\n

Tell me.
\nTell me.<\/p>\n

And now listen very carefully to my response:<\/p>\n

Yes, you can.<\/em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

I believe.<\/em><\/p>\n

It is possible. <\/em><\/p>\n

2016 is your year. You have waited a long time for this\u2014and don\u2019t think for one minute those years have been wasted time. Oh no. All these years and experiences have been preparing you for this moment\u2014this moment when the Sky of Possibilities<\/em> opens up above your head.<\/p>\n

What must you do before you leave this earth, precious child?<\/em><\/p>\n

Write it.
\nSay it.
\nScream it.
\nWhisper it.
\nPray it.
\nBelieve it.<\/p>\n

Now listen to my response:<\/p>\n

Your dream is important.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

It is so very important. Do not let the naysayers, real or imaginary, tell you otherwise. <\/em><\/p>\n

From my eight-year-old dreamer heart to yours, \u201cIt\u2019s time. It\u2019s time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just look up at the big, bold words written in the sky \u2026<\/p>\n

It is possible.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"flower\"<\/a><\/p>\n

********************<\/p>\n

My friends, I just have to tell you. As I was working on this piece, I received a message from a member of \u00a0The Hands Free Revolution community<\/a>. Having a publishing dream herself, she asked me to tell her my first step. After corresponding with some details and encouraging words, she said something I will never forget: \u201c<\/em><\/strong>You just made my black and white version of life turn into 3D color.\u201d Friends, I saw her sky open up right then and there. And because I think it\u2019s helpful to see real life examples of dreams coming to fruition, I want to tell you about several dear friends who I\u2019ve been blessed to encourage as they take bold steps to do what makes their hearts come alive. Following that list of individuals is a jumping off point for you that I hope you will consider, as well as an incredible resource to help you move you forward. In the comments today, please tell us your dream or simply put #itstime<\/span> as a declaration of what\u2019s to come. Take a look at what these brave people are doing \u2026 <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n