Have you ever feared that you are watching someone ruin their life?

I’m there right now and I’ve got to tell you, it’s scary — sitting their and watching someone you have respect for, chase after a dream and an idea that is completely and utterly ridiculous.
The funny thing is, that I seem to be the only person who feels that way. Which forces me to sit back and watch it all unfold.

Now, I know that I’ve shared on multiple occasions on here that I’m not a big dreamer. I think that many of you have misunderstood that concept so, let me clear it up for you. I have dreams. I have ambitions. I have goals. However, I am heavily influenced by reality and, when reality dictates it necessary for me to abandon those dreams, ambitions or goals or, even temporarily subdue those dreams, ambitions and goals I do so. I also do not pursue dreams, goals or ambitions that are virtually unattainable, or that will cause great deals of stress in my life. In my opinion if your dream is going to stress you to the point that the stress is affecting other parts of your life, then it’s not really worth pursuing.

The reason I feel that way all goes back to reality.

You see you can only control your present, and realistically speaking stressing over the future or the past and how they may or may not affect each other is a waste of time. The here and now should be the center of your focus, with a slight look ahead to the future because seriously, the here and now are the only things that you have even SLIGHT control over. I am well aware of the fact that the here and now directly or indirectly affect the future, but if you’re spending a crap load of time altering your here and now to make it work for your future then you are causing in my opinion, an unnecessary stress in your life.
What is suppose to happen is going to happen, and if you think you have complete control over what is happening, or what is suppose to happen then you’re sadly mistaken. Life, family, friends, politics, love, health and a whole slew of other issues affect the present and in the end are going to have a direct or indirect affect on the future and that, my friends, is reality.
It is, or at least I feel it is, possible for you to garner some form of control, even if it is slight of the issues that affect the present but, if you’re so caught up in making those issues work for your future, for your dreams, ambitions and goals, then you’re really going to screw up your present, which in turn will most likely ruin your future.

It would seem, to most anyway, that I have a very twisted view on dreams. Honestly, I don’t think it’s as twisted as it appears. It actually boils down to one thing and that one thing of course is REALITY. Listen, fantasy lands are great, they sometimes provide a numbness to the stinging sensation known as life but, when you spend more time in fantasy land then you do real life you’re hurting yourself and those around you.

I’m not saying it is wrong to pursue your dreams, or your ambitions and goals. Hell, I’m still pursuing mine, but they are consistently changing as a result of the life I have now. I don’t have the same dreams, ambitions or goals I had a year ago, much less 5 years ago. Does that mean I’m not looking ahead to the future? Quite the contrary, I am very much looking forward to what the future has in store. I’m just refusing to accept the fact that I have control over that future.

I worry about my friend. I worry about the amount of time, energy and effort he is putting into chasing a dream that I don’t even think he fully comprehends. I’m frightened by the fact that it’s so easy for him to disguise this plan, or this vision as he calls it as part of a vision he was given by the God he serves. I am flabbergasted by the sacrifices he is willing to make all in the name of a dream that realistically speaking is going to leave him hurting. Worst of all, I’m worried about what the potential failure of this dream is going to do to him. For as long as I’ve known him, he’s been a dreamer and over that time I’ve seen many of his dreams flounder and I’ve seen the tremendous toll it has taken on his life. In the end, I recognize that he is an adult and since I seem to be the only voice of dissension right now I have to sit back and watch.
Trust me, I am watching, with eyes wide open and a heart that feels a great deal of trepidation.