Take your passion and make it happen

We went to see Flashdance at the National Arts Centre tonight.  It was very good.  I enjoyed it though not as much as I thought I would.  It was long and dragged a little at times.  But the dancing was definitely amazing.  And you do get that amazing rush to hear music that you know, live on-stage, in such a big production. 

They changed the story a lite bit, but ultimately, the story is about following through on your dreams and working hard. It is a good reminder to me that I have to follow through on my dreams, which is writing, and I haven't been doing that lately, either writing in this blog or starting the serious fiction writing that I want to do, and that I haven't time to do in the last 11 years, but that I promised myself I would do.

I have become absorbed in my new job, trying to learn tax policy and trying to make a good impression, which is difficult because I have been trying to maintain my leaving time of 5:00, which nobody at Tax seems to do.  And they all have little kids, younger than mine, and they are all lovely people, but they all say that that their spouse picks up their kids, and they are content to see their children, even their babies, for an hour a day.  And if they are not really content, they accept it.  And I wish I could tell them that that is wrong. 

I have to admit that I have spent time on the weekends and sometimes in the evenings working from home.  Because there is a lot of work to do.  And I want to a great job.  And I want to show them that I can do a great job without having to stay late every night (because then they can't complain, right?).  And I want to advance. Yes, I want it all.  And I think there is no reason I can't.  And that we can't all have it all, if we all decide to live like that.

But back to my dream about writing.  I suppose I can't do it when I am trying to draft my costing methodology after hours.  So maybe I do have to make some choices.  I can do my job and be with my family.  And I can do a little bit more.  But what will it be?  Spend time with friends?  Chop vegetables for my salad?  Go to yoga class?  Help Amrita with her piano?  Try to sort out who's going to the dance with whom in Aveen's grade 6 class?  Take a nap?  Do a little more work?  Watch an episode of Glee?  (Thank you, D & J for the great recommendation!)  Send an e-mail to a friend?  Volunteer to go on a school field trip?  Start writing my great novel?

Any of those choices would be great and right.  Each day, I can choose something different.  One day, I hope I will choose to write, and little by little, be closer to that dream.  Until I do, I will be living my other dreams.