Choosing Your Ideal Life

We commonly talk about what we would have done differently in the past if only we had known then what we know now. We tend to imagine that all of our disappointments would not have occurred if only we had done this or that. We tend to forget that if we had chosen a different path in life it would likely have led to different disappointments. Those who are old have doubts about our past, but those who are young have dreams about the future.

With this in mind, let’s do a bit of dreaming. Not dreaming about the path that we should have taken or intend to take, but rather the end result, the goal of it all. Let your imagination run wild!

We’ll start with being born at the same time, and in the same place, and to the same parents as you were. Now, in your ideal life, do you get married, or do you have multiple lovers? Do you ever have children? None, one, two, how many?

What is the profession of your dreams? Is it to be a rock star? Maybe a professional athlete, perhaps one of the greatest of all time?  Or perhaps you want to revolutionize the world by inventing a replacement for Google, or Microsoft? How far do you wish to go? How high do you wish to climb?

Where do you live, or do you have several homes?  Where are they located? Do you stay in contact with childhood friends, or have you replaced them with new ones?

Ultimately, how wealthy do you dream of being? How many zeros in your savings account does it take to satisfy your dream?

Now that we’ve finished with that, I wish to propose a very different dream. We’ll call it dream number two. In this dream, you don’t achieve fame or fortune. You aren’t starving, but it seems that everyone you know has more money than you do. You may fall in love and have children, and you may not.

What you do have is a gift. A gift that shapes your life from an early age. It may be the gift to be a great composer such as Vivaldi, Mozart, or Tchaikovsky; or to write literature such as Shakespeare, Dostoevsky, or perhaps like Sophocles. Maybe you have the ability to paint like Vermeer, Repin, Durer, or Van Gogh. Take your choice.

The accomplishment of this life is found in the inspiration that it leaves behind. For centuries, or maybe even millennia to come your work will be sought out by those who seek the meaning of life. Your work will be discussed and debated by those who seek the truth in beauty, and the beauty in truth. As I stated earlier, your name may be forgotten, but does it really matter? The choice is yours.

So, which do you want, dream number one, or dream number two? What do you think your friends would choose, and why? What do your choices tell you about yourself and the world which has shaped you from the time that you were born?

It’s something to think about.