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Listen to the MUSTN'TS, child,
Listen to the DON'TS
The IMPOSSIBLES, the WON'TS
Listen to the NEVER HAVES
Then listen close to me-
Anything can happen, child,
ANYTHING can be.
-Shel Silverstein |
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Hang Your Dreams
I'm sitting in my rented white Park Avenue buick, parked on the side of a Yellowstone National Park country road. Through the front windshield I'm watching a small herd of dark brown buffalo graze on golden ground grass and light green sage. On the horizon beyond the buffalo are hillsides covered with green pines and autumn yellow trees. All of us are under a partially clouded big Wyoming sky. The buffalo have horns and the biggest one has a small bird riding on its back.
I'm here vacationing after a hard but marvelous working day at Montana State University -Bozeman. I'd wanted to see Montana for a long time; ever since my high school sweatheart Lori praised the town of Miles City were her grandfather, 'Daddy Chuck' lived.
I got myself to Montana by dreaming. Two years ago I met the career center director from MSU at a conference in Florida. He gave me his business card which had a photo of beautiful Bozeman Montana on the back. Determined to see it for myself someday I took that small photo and hung it on the wall by my desk. The dream of speaking in Bozeman stayed fresh in my mind.
Two years later, a student from the activities department at Bozeman called with an 'interest in my lecture.' In my line of work 'interest' often amounts to nuthin, but when she said Bozeman I reached up and pulled the Bozeman photo off of my wall, flipped it over and said "I've got a friend at Bozeman, Ralph Brigham, the career center director. I bet he'd be thrilled to help you promote my lecture." That basically sealed my getting an all-expense paid trip to Bozeman and Yellowstone.
The trip was worth the two year wait. I did three fifty minute classroom lectures during the day and reached over 450 students. Then I did my 'main event' lecture at 7:00 pm for another 300 people. Each of my talks went over great and as a sign of how well they were received, even though I brought an unusually high number of books, I sold them all.
But I might have to say that the high point was randomly selecting a student from the evening's audience and giving her a free one hundred dollar bill. If you've never given someone a free $100, no strings attached, try it someday - it is one heck of a great feeling.
The buffalo herd just crossed the road. The big one let out a gutteral yell, and crossed first. Soon after all the others followed. They are so close to my car I hear them chewing. They are pretty animals with big faces. I bark and howl at them but they only give me a glance.
Until next week, be great.
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Hot Tip
Find photos that represent your dreams and hang them where you'll see them daily.
Speed Limit in Montana: "Reasonable & Prudent"
-Fact
Hot Tip
The more detail you put into your dreams the greater chance of them coming true.
"Adopt the pace of nature, her secret is patience."
-Emerson (1803-1882) |
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