{Leila | Don't Speak Whinese} Dreams Do Come True

I am a dreamer. But I don't live in my dreams. I have this crazy drive that will fight at length to make them come true. In college, I had this crazy idea to travel the world and learn Spanish to become a teacher (despite the fact that I couldn't speak Spanish and had only ever been on a plane once and never traveled...heck, I had hardly been out of the state of Washington at age 18). And it happened! I'm happy to share that I've been teaching Spanish for 13 years and have lived in Mexico & Spain, and traveled to Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, England, France, Italy, Peru and Tahiti. After 10 years of teaching and traveling in Spain again, I had this crazy idea of becoming a photographer. And here I am doing exactly what I dreamt of only four years later. I believe in dreams. They are food for our soul. But I believe that they should live in our actions and our lives...and not our imagination.

I stumbled upon this blog on Twitter due to an unfortunate accident...and I was completely inspired by what I read by David duChemin...

I have written before that life is short, but it’s becoming more than a passing feel-good idea; it’s becoming the place from which I make my biggest decisions. I am moved more than ever by the awareness of the brevity of life and that the fulfillment of our dreams and longings aren’t simply things that accidentally happen to us. Life is complicated and at times feels more like something that happens to us than something we make happen, I know, but people live extraordinary lives because they overcome those circumstances and choose to do the things they dream about.

I could have written those words (although not as eloquently)! It's exactly how I feel about living. I constantly find myself frustrated in conversations by people that make excuses and settle for the less than great situation that they are in (I'm only referring to those circumstances that are within our control...and, yes, I too am guilty of this).

But too many people don’t listen to their dreams at all. Or they listen but allow the dreams themselves to get drowned out by the desire to fill their homes with stuff or even just to play it safe, or – and this is more likely – they listen to their fears. (Please read the rest of this blog, it's powerful!)

My point in sharing all this with you? Back in December I had an awesome conversation with a friend named Leila. She talked about her experiences, her life, her visions, and her dreams. I loved everything she shared with me. She inspired me. And made me laugh. And I really just wanted to hear more. I was so happy when she decided to launch her blog and make what she had been dreaming about a reality (you can read her version here). She is the kind of girl that could move mountains and I have no doubt that she will. She has passion running through her veins. She is an amazing mom first and foremost (so don't be scared away by her frank language). I kinda want to set up camp over at her house so my little girl can participate in all of the fun crafts and activities she plans with her kids. In a world that does not like to hear truth, she blurts it out whether you want to hear it or not. I kinda envy her ability to be 100% true to her.

You gotta check out her blog, but start HERE first to get the back story. (On a side note, I read her blog out loud to my family at Christmas and everyone was laughing out loud, for real!) I have adopted her blog title as a theme in our home...."Don't Speak Whinese". And holy crap, it works! My little girl knows that I will not respond to her whining and that she has to ask nicely with please and thank you to get results. So simple, but I would have never realized if it were not for Leila.

I had the privilege of capturing a few headshots for her to use on her blog and marketing. Meet Leila...

This is a classic Leila face...