The Life You Have

I believe it was Wendell Berry that said, or at least inspired the saying, “Don’t live the life you dream of, live the life you have.”

That’s where we are.
Right here.
This life.
With all its failures, missed opportunities, and unfulfilled dreams.

If you’re dreaming of another life, the one you missed, the one you could have had, the one that so-and-so lives, you’re investing in a future that will be a continuation of your present. Exactly as it currently is. Your dream is the pressure release valve that keeps your life from exploding—demanding a complete rebuild. Your dream is the fodder that you gnaw on and therefore never grow hungry enough to change.

Ah, but if you live the life you have, and drill into it, excavate it for all that it has to offer, milk it for all its nourishment and surprise and sweetness, you will inevitably arrive at both gratitude and a restless need to discover more. And in that—thankfulness for what is and a desire for what can be—is all the fuel you’ll ever need to change.