dreaming dangerously

I've always been a dreamer. even when I was young, I dreamed of great love and traveling the world. of being successful in my own right. of finding something I was truly passionate about. and of not just dreaming, but doing.

I've always had big plans for my life. I knew that things would not just "happen". I had to step outside my comfort zone to be able to learn and grow and achieve. and I did. I wanted to leave Michigan and the Midwest. I found an internship in New York, moved there, and found a job on the East Coast. and now I've started a nice little life here. I wanted a great love. I found someone who wants the same love. we overcame countless challenges and obstacles to get where we are. and while it is a thing that will be continually growing and changing, the love is there and it is great. I want to pursue my passion for photography. the camera was the first step- researched and planned and saved for. now I'm learning. and though the time is not yet right I've begun building the framework: researching classes, investigating websites, reserving names, testing prints, pricing out business cards. I have a plan in place to get me where I want to be.

I am not satisfied with average and ordinary. my life may not seem anything special on the surface, but if you look closer you will find hints of where it's heading. my home is decorated with my own photography, not something bought in a store. I love to cook and to bake, but the kitchen is more than a place to find sustenance. it's a creative playground. a space filled with laughter and love and darn good food. someone told me it was "awfully Midwestern" of me to spend my free time baking. but he doesn't know that my baking blog has already had 5,000+ views in 12 countries, and has doubled its earnings in the last month. not to mention the joy the blog has brought me simply because I just love baking, love sharing what I bake, and love taking photographs of what I bake. I don't live extravagantly by material means. this year's finances just don't allow it. all spare cash will be spent on wedding and travel. but I'm ok with that. my bank account may be empty, but by the end of the summer my hard drive and my heart will be overflowing with memories (and photographs) of time and money well-spent.

and the best is yet to come. in the coming years, things will change. as good as things are, I'm not ready to hole up in this job and this life just yet. great things are out there waiting in the world. adventures across the globe: England, Spain, Egypt, Israel, Turkey, Greece, Italy. freedom from the 9 to 5. waking up each day to a cup full of coffee and endless possibilities. I won't be penned in by a white picket fence, and my life will not be average by any account.

"All people dream, but not equally. 

Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their mind, 

wake in the morning to find that it was vanity. 

But the dreamers of the day are dangerous people, 

For they dream their dreams with open eyes, 

And make them come true."
 

D.H. Lawrence

so here's to dreaming dangerously.