How Far Will Your Dreams Take You
Several years ago, in the late 1990’s to be exact, the song “Break My Stride” came back on my radar. Although it originally hit the air waves in 1883 on Matthew Wilder’s album I Don’t Speak the Language, it was late 1997 and early 1998 when the radio station I was listening to as I drove brought the song to the forefront of my mind.
BREAK MY STRIDE (Matthew Wilder)
The end of 1997 was difficult for me. My life was changing. I had filed for a divorce from the man I began dating in 1974 and married in 1983.
The deception and betrayal I was experiencing all but crippled me. I didn’t want to talk to any one. I didn’t want to go anywhere. What I wanted to do the day that song came on was crawl back under the covers or maybe have one too many drinks after I had put my kids to bed.
BUT,
for some reason, I turned the music up and sang along with the words, at least the chorus. It is a chorus that has compelled me to keep going and not succumb to the people and things that stand in my way.
BREAK MY STRIDE (Matthew Wilder)
"Ain't nothin' gonna break-a my stride Nobody gonna slow me down, oh no I got to keep on moving Ain't nothin' gonna break-a my stride I'm running and I won't touch ground Oh no, I got to keep on moving."
Since October 31, 1997, when my husband (now ex-husband or the term I heard somewhere “wasband”) walked out on me, I have found myself singing these lyrics or finding the song and playing it for myself: it helped me tackle divorce, it helped me brave the world and meet the “bestest husband ever,” it has helped me with being a target at the end of my teaching career, it helped me tackle moving to another state, it helped me deal with my husband’s (yes, the bestest husband) on-going health issues, and it is helping me as I struggle through this quarantine and virus pandemic.
So, here is my take-away for you today:
DON’T LET ANYBODY BREAK YOUR STRIDE.
Set your goal.
- Lose weight.
- Take a class or complete an educational goal: your GED, college, or training for a new career.
- Send out that resume for the job you dream of having.
- Get fit.
- Move to a different city or state.
Set the goal high.
AND,
- don’t let anyone tell you that your goals are unattainable. (If you never try, you’ll never know.)
- don’t let anyone make you feel that you are not worth a relationship, a job, or a promotion. (It is just not true.)
- don’t let anyone make you second guess your dreams, desires, or goals. (Let experience be your teacher.)
INSTEAD,
- Hold your head up.
- Don’t look back and regret what has happened.
- Don’t look back and judge your actions or reactions.
- If you have to look back, considered what has happened a lesson learned.
- Walk forward, today and every day, toward your goal. Today it might be just a baby-step, but keep the forward motion in your life going and soon you will be running.
BREAK MY STRIDE (Matthew Wilder)
Thanks for reading.
AND
