"It's Kind of Fun to do the Impossible." - Walt Disney

As most of my friends know (and my blog followers have probably figured out) I’m a fan of quotes. A friend of mine (and also a very smart clogging student) recently posted this Loren Cunningham quote on Facebook: “Young people do the impossible before they find out it’s impossible - that's why God uses them so often.” So when, where, and why do we grow out of the belief that our biggest goals and dreams are possible?

I’ll admit I’ve thought a few things in my life would never happen. I always wanted to go to Europe but to have the money to travel around the world and visit one European destination was something I figured I wouldn’t experience until I was at least 40 and had a stronger financial grounds. (Don’t ask me why I think 40 is the magic age…) But just a few short weeks ago at the age of 27, I found myself marveling at the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain, taking a gondola ride in Venice, Italy, hiking to a ancient fortress in the fjords of Kotor, Montenegro, and posing for a picture at the Pompeii ruins with Mt. Vesuvius in the background (photo to the right.) In all, I visited five European countries. To think about it today, it feels like I’m remembering a dream. (My next goal is Ireland.)

When I told my younger cloggers I would be gone for a couple weeks because I would be in Europe, they excitedly rushed up to me and asked where in Europe I was traveling and if I was going to see “that leaning tower.” I laughed and told them I didn’t know exactly where I was going to be able to go, but the leaning tower was on my list of things to see. Then one little girl piped up and said “I’m going to see that one day.”

Turn the page to an adult conversation – would most adults have the same definitive attitude as my younger junior clogger did? That this is something they will see one day? Some adults may say they wish they could go see the Eiffel Tower, but they inevitably find an excuse in one way or another as to why they can’t go - that it’s impossible.

I guess I have not grown-up completely because I don’t believe anything is impossible. Again I’ll admit that I had my doubts, but I knew if the right chance and opportunity presented itself then I would indeed get to taste pizza and lasagna in the country in which it was invented.

But too often I believe adults dismiss possibilities before they even have a chance to become reality. Is it so crazy to believe you could quit the awful day job you hate to create a successful small business doing something you love? Is it so crazy to believe you could actually enjoy a sunset in the French Riviera (even though it may not be on a multi-million dollar yacht) just like the millionaires who frequently vacation there? Is it crazy to believe that you could become a singer or an actress or a dancer the way you always dreamed you would when you were a child?

To say that something is impossible or simply can’t happen is only living life halfway. I’m sure I’ve said this in past posts, and I’m sure I’ll say it in many future posts, but we only get one life to live. Don’t let it pass you by. Seize the day. Grab life by the horns. And don’t be afraid of possibility and dreams becoming reality. After all, where’s the fun in not pushing the boundaries?

Santa = Stress??

As I scrolled through stories on a health website, I saw a headline that read “Control Your Stress During the Holidays.” I scrolled further to find “8 Easy Tips to Keep Your Stress in Check This Holiday Season.” And even further down, I read “Simple Ways to Beat Holiday Stress.” Did I miss something? When and why did Christmas become so stressful??

Yes, I know we’re all running this way and that to get the tree trimmed, the house decorated perfectly, and gifts purchased for our loved ones (and some that aren’t so loved), but why do we put these tasks in our “stressful” column.

So have our lives become so complicated that we can’t pull enjoyment from a sparkling Christmas tree? What exactly do we put in our stressful column? Everything? Why are we not taking the time to enjoy everything we do instead of complaining about it?

I've had the Christmas Spirit from day one!

Christmas has always been (and still is) my favorite time of the year. It’s the only time of the year when I feel carefree and less stressed. When I was a little girl, I remember the smell of good food. I remember the site of my mom in the kitchen preparing tons of holiday treats. I remember being so excited about seeing my cousins at family get-togethers or watching movies with my dad on Christmas Eve before I attempted to overcome my excitement and go to sleep. I remember waking up Christmas morning and running down to our living room to see our 10-foot tall Christmas tree decorated to the max with stacks of presents underneath. I remember finding a half-eaten plate of cookies next to the fireplace and a note with the most beautiful script handwriting – handwriting that only Santa himself could produce. Those happy memories continued through the years and still continue today. It was just a few years ago that my nieces stood at the living room door and watched Rudolph playing in the yard while a big jolly elf stood nearby ho-ho-hoing. How could making memories like these be labeled as stressful?

My big sister, Crysta, and I digging through our stockings

And don’t try to use the adult excuse – “Well things are harder now because we’re adults, and we are the ones who have to prepare the food, and buy the presents, and plan a big holiday get-together for the family.” Nope, I’m not buying it. I LOVE buying presents for people! To see the look on my grandmother’s face when she opens a simple present – a picture of her family displayed in a plain black frame. I look forward to seeing the expression on my cousins’ faces as they unwrap and lay eyes on a very special gift I knew was for them as soon as I saw it. Being an adult doesn’t mean Christmas is automatically stressful. Yes, I know we have more things to do, but I enjoy getting out the Frosty the Snowman snack platters I only get to use once a year and stacking them full of pigs-in-blankets to enjoy while watching a Christmas movie with my husband and sister-in-law.

Maybe instead of viewing all of these holiday “stresses” as negatives, we need to take a step back and realize how lucky we are to have a home to decorate, money to buy a Christmas tree, and loved ones to buy gifts for (even the annoying, pesky father-in-law.) Plus, if you’re a Christian (which I am), why not reflect on the ultimate gift of all – the birth of the baby Jesus, a child who would grow and ultimately give his life for all mankind. Throughout the year, so many of us want to be loved, but we reject the season where everyone is giving love freely. Cue the therapist… Why do people automatically deem this season that is full of love, family, fun, and (don’t forget) good food stressful? The only worry I’ll have during the Christmas season is how long it’s going to take me to work off all the ham, turkey mashed potatoes, and Christmas cookies!!