I made a dream catcher the other day. Don't know why but I did. I figured it was just another one of my occasional urges to make something as I've been known to satisfy my creative impulses with everything from origami birds made from lottery tickets in casino restaurants to robin’s egg blue coffee tables that now sit in my living room. Truth is, when the muse hits I’ve made it a point to listen because experience has taught me that she knows best.
Back to my story though...
I ended up assembling my dream catcher 3 weeks after gathering materials (thank you Desi) on a beautiful Sunday after a barbecue with some of my closest friends. When I was left alone in my apartment molding wire and cutting jute rope, I started thinking how peculiar it was that I’d chosen a dream catcher as my project this time around. Was my subconscious telling me to be more deliberate about giving shape to my future? Had I been so focused on building my business in the past couple of months that I was ignoring what made me take the risk to go solo in the first place? When was the last time that I had actually allowed myself to have a minute to just dream like I did when I was little?
I decided to embrace the symbolism behind my project and as I worked I channeled all of my dreams for the future into what eventually became the dream catcher you can see in the picture above. With every twist of the rope I encouraged my imagination to run wild and I surprised myself as I noticed how much those dreams had changed in just a matter of a year.
My new dreams had clearer emotional footprints rather than physical ones. The 'what' didn’t matter as much as the how it felt. I found myself imagining experiences and connections more than anything else and with that I realized how deeply my definition of happiness had changed and how my dreams for the future had seamlessly followed suit.
With great pride I finished the dream catcher and hung it on my bookcase because I wanted my dreams to be nestled in the wisdom of some of my favorite books and close to some of the things I love most like pictures of my loved ones and souvenirs from my travels. It hung there for two weeks as another one of my craft projects and a reminder of the life I’m trying to build.
Today though, something shifted.
Maybe it’s because Mother’s Day is around the corner or because I simply miss my mom but as I look at the dream catcher now, I can’t help but think of her. My beautiful mother Claudia. As I do, I also can’t help but notice the similarities between the two.
You see, like my dream catcher, my mother isn’t perfect but she’s beautiful. Like my dream catcher she is privy to all of my hopes and dreams for the future and she keeps those dreams nestled securely in her bosom but gently enough to give them a place to rest with no conditions. Like my dream catcher she is a patient but constant reminder of the person I have set out to be and reminds me to think in the realm of possibility. ‘Sky’s the limit!’ she says...
Like my dream catcher my mother is filled with nothing but good intentions and while she isn’t the loudest piece on the shelf she’s by far the most memorable. Why? Because she carries in her heart all of the good that I have in mine. Because my dreams wouldn't exist without her tireless support and the wings she gave me to fly with as a child. Because today, one of those dreams is to be half the woman she is.
That is our bond and it is beautiful.
Let this be a reminder for all of us to make room for our dreams and call our moms.
Namasme.