Every Dream Ever Realized Started with a Simple Wish

That ‘thing’ that you can’t get out of your mind? Start there.

Sometime more than 30 years ago I fell in love with the story of Anne of Green Gables. For those of you who don’t know the story, it’s about a young orphan girl, with a huge heart and insatiable imagination, who is adopted by two aging siblings on Prince Edward Island – the smallest Canadian province on the East Coast of the country. Anne was an inspiration to me, and became a storybook character who I adored – for so many reasons. I loved her spunk, her willingness to explore, and her ability to stand up for herself and do what’s right, even when it was hard. I loved that she loved her home, and that she cherished her friends. I loved that she loved school and that she chose simplicity to be content. I loved her integrity and her heart.

I can’t explain why I loved this character so much except that maybe we were “kindred spirits”, as Anne would say. There was something about her and the Lake of Shining Waters, and the red sands of PEI, that were mesmerizing to me.

When I was in my twenties I made my first dream board, and, on it I put Green Gables as a place I wanted to see before I turned 40.

I don’t know why I picked 40. I just did. 

When people would ask me what adventures I wanted to go on in my life, PEI was always at the top of my list.

Well, the months and years went by as they do… I got married, had 2 kids, changed careers many times, built businesses, achieved successes, and went through many ups and downs along the way…

And 9 months before that milestone birthday, something shifted in me. That goal, that dream, was still on my heart and I knew, without a shadow of a doubt that I needed to make it happen.

So I said YES.

The trouble was, in that moment in my life, I had recently left my job and was in a place of not really knowing where to go next. I had just made one of the most difficult choices of my life by leaving my position, but I knew I had to leave that company in order to remain in my integrity and in order to do what was right for me… much like I’m sure Anne would have done, had she been in my shoes.

I think she would have given me a high five.

After walking away from what I thought was the perfect role for me, the memory of that life dream was still there in my mind, on my dream board, and – most importantly – in my heart, and I knew I had to make it come true.

So I set out determined to find a way to get to PEI before my 40th birthday.

When the nudge comes from deep within you… That’s when you know you’re in alignment with what you’re meant to do.

But I didn’t have a plan. And I hadn’t saved for it. Don’t forget, I had left my business for over a year in order to take the job that I had just left, and I needed to build up my practice again, find a way to replace my income, and save a pretty hefty sum for the trip.

And this is where it gets interesting…

The moment I committed, in my heart – to ‘the call’ – was the moment the solution presented itself.

A new door opened… so I walked through it.

The solution doesn’t matter as much as trusting the direction that we’re given. In my case, I had become friends with the manager at the yoga studio where I had been practicing for a year… She said that she needed to find someone to connect with the new members and sell yoga memberships and asked if I would be interested in doing it in the interim while I was reestablishing my business.

I would have never come up with that solution on my own. It literally landed in my lap.

We met a few times and I asked a lot of questions.

Then I said Yes.

Within 5 months, I had replaced my previous income in my business and was able to put all of my additional funds from my sales into an account reserved for my dream trip.

And I booked it.

I booked everything: the condo on Green Gables property, the flights, the car rental, the tickets to see “Anne The Musical”.

And I cried when we drove over the Confederation Bridge and I saw that tiny little island, with the red sand beaches, for the first time.

Me crying…

Sometimes you don’t know how a dream is going to come true.

Sometimes you just have to say yes when the door opens even if it’s not exactly how you think life’s supposed to go.

Sometimes it IS exactly how it’s supposed to go.

I believe dreams can come true.

You just have to listen to the inner nudges and say yes.