Meet Jared, Andy, Nick and Steve.

I approached these guys during lunch hour. They were chatting away, having a grand ol’ time at their table for four. While I hadn’t planned group interviews, this was sure to be fun, so I stopped dead in my tracks and introduced myself.

I asked Jared, Andy, Nick and Steve one question. “If you didn’t have to worry about money, what would you do with your life?”

This was their response.

Jared, Andy, Nick and Steve work together at a window manufacturing company. Three of them work in design and engineering, and one works in finance. These guys were clearly comfortable with one another. I couldn’t have wished for a more fun conversation.

Nick was the first to respond. If he didn’t have to worry about money and could do anything with his life, he’d be a NFL general manager.

Jared would be a college volleyball coach. He used to coach volleyball, but realized he wouldn’t make the money he does in window design and engineering.

Steve would be a hunting or fishing guide.

And Andy? Well, let’s just say he would “stay home.” Andy says he’d “be a professional consumer of things.” If he felt like reading a book, he would. If he wanted an ice cream cone, he’d go get one. If he wanted to spend the afternoon joining Steve on a hunting or fishing tour, he would. If he wanted to watch movies all afternoon, he would. “You’d do whatever you want,” Andy declared casually and confidently.

We tried to get Andy to think of something, anything he’d want to do besides “stay home” and consume things. Nope. Nothing. He was sure about that! He gave us some good laughs, and truth be told, I think a little part of us agreed. Perhaps we’d all enjoy and benefit from some moments to do whatever we please.

So what can we learn from Jared, Andy, Nick and Steve?

It’s tough to nail down just one nugget of wisdom from four guys’ dreams.

But these nuggets rise to the top.

I didn’t sense deep sadness or regret in any of these guys. Sure, they all knew what they’d do with their lives if they didn’t have to worry about money. But I’m pretty sure they’re all okay living in reality, too. So hey, if your reality is working great for you, no need to chase down anything different. Often, God has us right where we need to be.

Rest confidently knowing your dreams are unique, tailor-made for you. Our dreams, whether big or small, reveal a lot about who we are and who we’re becoming. Three out of four of these guys would choose leadership positions if they didn’t have to worry about money, and one would choose to “stay home” and “be a professional consumer of things.” Some of us are outwardly inclined, and some of us are inwardly inclined. Some of us are destined to be leaders, and some of us are destined to live a quiet life. Your dream might fit in others’ box of expectations, and it might not fit at all. Don’t be swayed to dream differently. Whoever you are, whatever you dream, own it.

So tell me…is there something from Jared, Andy, Nick and Steve’s story that you can take and apply to your own life? 

 

 

 

*This post is a part of a month-long 31 Days series titled Dreams from the Street. If you’d like to read more from my series, click here and you’ll be brought to the series landing page where all 31 posts are listed and linked! You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/AmyBPederson where I’ll tweet links to all 31 posts using hashtag #write31days, and I’d LOVE to connect on Facebook at facebook.com/AmyBPederson! I’m so glad you stopped by. Make yourself comfortable and take a peek around the place. You’re welcome back anytime.

Meet Cecilia.

She sat on a padded bench with her tiny babe pulled close in a stroller. Her back was turned to me, but I felt led to approach anyway.

I asked Cecilia one question. “If you didn’t have to worry about money, what would you do with your life?”

This was her response.

Cecilia used to live in El Salvador. She wasn’t worried about money at all when she lived there. She grew her own crops and was “just happy.” Cecilia noted that in El Salvador, “money is not a major theme.”

Here in the United States “you have to worry about money” for your car, gas, and food. “I worry a lot about money here,” she said.

Cecilia couldn’t have said it in any plainer English.

“I wasn’t worried about money until I got here.”

I asked Cecilia if she was glad she decided to move to the United States. “Not really,” she replied. She’s always worried about money and paying her bills on time.

Cecilia works in a greenhouse. I asked her how she likes it. “It’s okay,” she said.

If she didn’t have to worry about money at all, she’d open her own greenhouse.

So what can we learn from Cecilia?

The take-aways are simple and profound.

Money fuels most everything in the United States. It’s a blessing, but it can also be a tremendous burden.

Sure, “money makes the world go round.”

But we’ll never be fully ourselves until we rid ourselves of this more, more, more mentality.

The ultimate desire of our heart is NOT to be richer, but to overflow with love, joy and peace.

Is this really true? I believe so.

Perhaps this post is best ended with another rhetorical question…

If you could only pick one, which would you choose? All the world’s riches, or a deep sense of contentment and fulfillment?

 

 

 

*This post is a part of a month-long 31 Days series titled Dreams from the Street. If you’d like to read more from my series, click here and you’ll be brought to the series landing page where all 31 posts are listed and linked! You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/AmyBPederson where I’ll tweet links to all 31 posts using hashtag #write31days, and I’d LOVE to connect on Facebook at facebook.com/AmyBPederson! I’m so glad you stopped by. Make yourself comfortable and take a peek around the place. You’re welcome back anytime.

Meet Lola.

She captured my attention with her bright pink hair as she opened the doors to a candy store filled with gummy bears, lollipops, and crystallized candy sticks.

I asked Lola one question. “If you didn’t have to worry about money, what would you do with your life?”

This was her response.

Lola would live comfortably, not have to worry about things she can’t afford, and wouldn’t skimp on anything. She’d get everything she’s always wanted, and would treat family and friends to anything they wanted. She’d have a bigger house and most definitely, A LOT of cats.

If she didn’t have to worry about money, Lola would prefer to NOT have a job. But if she did work, she’d probably “sell little art things,” like “make stupid necklaces and phone cases.”

I asked Lola to tell me more about the necklaces and phone cases she’s made.

She’s made one necklace.

And she hasn’t made any phone cases yet, but “dream[s] of it.”

So what can we learn from Lola?

Why sit on your dreams? Take a little action. Even if it’s just one step.

Lola’s dreamed of making phone cases and necklaces. I encouraged her to be bold, take action and explore that dream.

What have you’ve been dreaming about? Do it. Today.

So tell me…is there something from Lola’s story that you can take and apply to your own life? 

 

 

 

*This post is a part of a month-long 31 Days series titled Dreams from the Street. If you’d like to read more from my series, click here and you’ll be brought to the series landing page where all 31 posts are listed and linked! You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/AmyBPederson where I’ll tweet links to all 31 posts using hashtag #write31days, and I’d LOVE to connect on Facebook at facebook.com/AmyBPederson! I’m so glad you stopped by. Make yourself comfortable and take a peek around the place. You’re welcome back anytime.

This month, I’m participating in one of the largest blog link-ups that exists, 31 Days hosted by The Nester. Last year, in 31 Day’s 5th year, over 1,500 bloggers participated! The challenge is to choose a topic and write about it for 31 days straight. All the bloggers who participate link-up their series at the 31 Days website. There, you can click on various categories and read until your heart’s content!

I joined the 31 Days craze for the first time in 2013 with a series titled Letters to the Unthanked. I loved my series and loved being part of a committed community of bloggers. From the moment I completed the series, I knew I’d write another in 2014. Yes, my husband’s the one who had to remind me that 31 Days wasn’t all rainbows and unicorns. It’s definitely a challenge to write, edit and publish a post every day for 31 days straight. This is no small task. 31 Days is like birthing a child. There’s no way to get through it but to do the hard work of writing, writing, and writing some more. But in the end – when you look back and realize you’ve birthed a beautiful body of work – you can say with certainty, it was worth it.

This year’s 31 Days series wasn’t conceived as quickly as last year’s. Most of the year, I intended to write another letters series titled Letters to My Baby. But I wasn’t sure it fit neatly within my new blog vision, so I tucked the concept away for another day. Another vision rose to the top. I wanted to interview 31 elderly and and hear their perspectives on loving life. It was and still is a concept I’d love to explore, but once I started making contacts, I realized that logistically speaking, it was going to require a lot more planning than I expected. So once again, I tucked away the concept for another day.

At that point, I was empty handed. But not for long!

I wanted this year’s series to be about people and for people. I wanted to interview strangers. I wanted to ask one question. And I wanted to go as deep as possible within a limited time frame. So my husband and I had a couple brainstorming sessions, and voila! The topic surfaced. I knew without a doubt. This was my 31 Days series for 2014.

31 Dreams from the Street

So here’s what it’s going to look like…

Throughout the course of the month, I’m going to be selecting 31 strangers from the street for brief, on-the-spot interviews. After explaining who I am and why I’m approaching them, I’m going to ask ONE age-old question…

“If you didn’t have to worry about money, what would you do with your life?”

Whether I have two minutes or ten minutes with someone, my goal is to develop rapport and get to the center of their heart as quickly as possible. I don’t want to get too personal, but these are the questions begging to be asked under the surface.

What are the desires of your heart? What do you really want to be when you “grow up?” What’s the thing you always wanted to do, but all the logic and reasoning in the world told you it wasn’t a good idea? What in the world would you do with your one beautiful life if you didn’t have to worry about money at all? Tell me, you, beautiful you. Tell me.

Here are the things I’m sure of going into this series…

I’m going to get 31 vastly different answers to one question.

I’m going to experience some level of rejection.

I’m going to be blown away by peoples’ dreams.

I’m going to note significant discrepancies between peoples’ realities and peoples’ dreams.

I’m going to see some people moving towards their dreams, and some people far from their dreams.

I’m going to be moved to tears.

I’m going to speak with people I definitely would’ve noticed, but wouldn’t have conversed with otherwise.

I’m going to witness the whole spectrum of emotions.

I’m going to be stretched outside of my comfort zone.

I’m going to learn a hundred things I didn’t expect to learn.

I’m going to publish some edgy content.

And I’m pretty sure I’m going to love it (and I hope you do too)!

So at this point, you might be wondering what’s in this series for you?

Well, I’ve thought about that long and hard. I can’t quite wrap my brain around what this will look like yet, but at the end of each post, I’m going to share a nugget of wisdom, a unique lesson learned from that interview – for you.

It’s not my nature to launch a 31-day series that feels so random, so unplanned, so out of my control in so many ways. I have no idea who I’m going to meet. I have no idea how they’ll respond to me or my question. And it bugs me that I can’t tell you in advance what nuggets of wisdom I’m going to share. Basically, I have no idea what I’m in for.

But this is the series I’ve chosen.

This is the series that God seems to have chosen for me.

So I return to the thing I know for sure. That question…

“If you didn’t have to worry about money, what would you do with your life?”

I’m pretty sure there are a thousand lessons waiting to be learned. It’s a matter of discerning the learning.

So let’s go! Let’s do this! It’s settled well with my soul.

These are dreams from the street.

Call me trailblazer. Call me pioneer. Call me crazy blogger lady. Whatever.

My mission? To discover what God’s laid on your soul. To discover the thing that makes your heart tick if all money’s set aside. Because I believe our hearts beat loudest and most in rhythm with God’s purposes and plans for our lives when we tap into the dreams He set in us from the beginning.

May my eyes be opened. May my soul be ready to hear. May my countenance be on spot.

May the Spirit guide my paths.

All 31 days. All 31 dreams from the street.

Send your positive thoughts and prayers my way, will you?

So I may return with stories of dreams unexpected, nuggets of wisdom, and pearls of grace for the journey ahead.

Let’s get practical for a minute, yes?! 

All 31 posts will be published on my blog home page as usual, but this post serves as my series landing page. At the bottom of this post, you’ll find links to ALL posts from the 31 Dreams from the Street series. It’s simple…find a post that intrigues you, click on it, and it’ll pop right up for your reading adventure!

I placed the series graphic on the right sidebar of my blog’s home page ——–> so click it anytime, and it’ll bring you back here where all 31 posts are listed and linked.

You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/AmyBPederson where I’ll tweet links to all 31 posts using hashtag #write31days, and I’d LOVE to connect on Facebook at facebook.com/AmyBPederson!

So glad you’ve chosen to stop by. Make yourself comfortable. Take a peek around the place, and know you’re welcome back anytime.

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to embark on this adventure. So let’s get to it! Join me, will you?!

Dream 1: Pink Hair, Cats & Phone Cases (Lola)

Dream 2: Money and Greenhouses (Cecilia)

Dream 3: Windows, Wishes and Good Guys (Jared, Andy, Nick & Steve)

Dream 4: Kids, Kids & More Kids (LeAnn)

Dream 5: Coffee and Confections (Jenny)

Dream 6: Basketball and DNA (Diamond & John)

Dream 7: Therapies and a Bucket List Blessing (Lisa)

Dream 8: Happiness (Jouaye)

Dream 9: LA, NYC & Fire (Steve)

Dream 10: Education (Kao Vang)

Dream 11: Work, Art & Design (Alex)

Dream 12: Editing & Producing (Lori)

Dream 13: Writing & Gardens (Lin)

Dream 14: Food & To Be Well (woman on the street)

Dream 15: Travel & Animals (Emily)

Dream 16: Enjoyment & Fulfillment (Carlo)

Dream 17: Travel, Roots & No More Suffering (Cali)

Dream 18: Self Care & Volunteering (Lisa)

Dream 19: Diesel Trucks & The Army (Mat)

Dream 20: Diesel School & A Diesel Truck (Maddy)

Dream 21: Food & Shelter (Jazmin)

Dream 22: Loving, Living & Traveling (Jose)

Dream 23: Cartooning & Animation (Cassie)

Dream 24: Dancing & Giving (Guest Post from a Nine-Year-Old Girl, Elsa)

Dream 25: A Whole Lot of Love (Darlene)

Dream 26: Sabbath: Where The Streets Have No Name

The Day I Wanted to Quit 31 Days

Rejections From the Street

Notes From the Street

My Dreams 

Your Dreams

It wasn’t the first time I’d gone through his drive-thru window at McDonald’s.

I knew it wasn’t my first time because of his voice. It was unforgettable.

So when I drove through that window, having recognized “that voice” and “that personality” that captures your attention in an instant, I knew I needed to speak to this man. I needed to know more about him. Because he seemed to love his life. At least, he seemed to love his job. Or maybe he just did a great job making the best of his job.

I told Reno I’d love to contact his supervisor and asked if we could meet someday during his lunch break. I handed him my blog business card through the drive-thru window and promised I’d be in touch.

One week later, we sat down for 20 minutes together during Reno’s lunch break at McDonald’s.

I asked him what made him tick, what made him love his work. Because I’d heard the kindness and the depth of his soul through his voice. I’d seen the fire inside him come straight through that drive-thru window. And it was a beautiful, beautiful fire, like this man is ready to light the world on fire, kind of fire.

That’s when Reno told me. “I beat the odds in my life.”

In 2000, he experienced a house fire. He was 21 years old when that happened. And since then, he’s had a better perspective on life.

Prior to the house fire, he had a job at the YWCA as a child care provider. At that time, he felt the purpose of his life was to provide motivation and direction for younger children who desperately needed it.

After the house fire, he got a job at McDonalds working in the drive-thru.

One day when Reno was working in the drive-thru, a man came through. He’d been through before and had engaged with Reno on several occasions. On this particular day, the man approached Reno with an unexpected offer. “How do you feel about making more money than McDonald’s?” He had lost an employee at his metal finishing business, and was looking for a replacement. He wanted Reno on his team. Reno felt blessed to have been offered this great opportunity, which would also provide him more money than his work at the McDonald’s drive-thru.

So Reno left McDonald’s. And he began working in metal finishing – stripping metal, coating metal, and using a fork lift to transport it here and there. McDonald’s, in the meantime, realized the value Reno added to their business, so they asked him to come back. Now Reno keeps two jobs, one shift at McDonald’s, and another shift at the metal finishing business.

He’s busy “working on bettering himself” and “focusing on responsibilities” and his “well being.” He has five children to provide for – a 6 month old, 7 year old, 12 year old, 14 year old, and 17 year old. He takes his life and responsibilities seriously. I can tell.

Reno shared that he “talks to the man upstairs” and prays “morning, night, anytime.” He feels like he “has a direct connection.” It’s “like HD (high definition),” he says.

Reno’s communication with “the man upstairs” clearly translates to the McDonald’s drive-thru window. Heck, that’s what captured my attention when I came through his window. His voice is incredible, phenomenal, memorable by anyone’s standards. And his personality, just awesome, lovely, delightful. He’s a warm, gentle soul. A man you’d be blessed to engage with any day.

So I wanted to know – what motivates Reno, what keeps him so upbeat in the McDonald’s drive-thru, what’s the philosophy he’s operating under so we can all learn from this man?

Here’s what he said.

Reno is intentional about communicating well with the customers that come through the drive-thru window. He never knows what kind of day they’ve been having, so his goal is to “keep a positive beat.” Even if customers are not responsive, he tries to be “kind and grateful.”

Reno says “I’m kind of like the Dr. Phil of the drive-thru.”

People will change McDonald’s and become “regulars” just because they want to engage with Reno regularly.

I can totally see why people would rearrange their routes to have an opportunity to engage with Reno more regularly. And I can totally see why he’s the “Dr. Phil of the drive-thru.” Because he is. He truly is.

Our conversation was lovely and delightful and I loved every bit of who Reno was, who Reno is. But I had one more question to ask before we parted ways.

I wanted to know what Reno’s ultimate dreams were for his life. I had a hunch those dreams might have something to do with his voice, and I was right. He knew right away – he’d do voiceovers, be a radio DJ, or a motivational speaker.

And with that, I got goose bumps all over. Within seconds, he got goose bumps all over, too. We showed each other our holy goosebumps.

Perhaps we were on to something. Perhaps “the man upstairs” was trying to tell us something that day. Perhaps Reno was made to do voiceovers or become a radio DJ. Or perhaps, just perhaps, he was made to be a motivational speaker.

(Reno, this next part is just for you.)

Perhaps you’ll become a motivational speaker. Perhaps we crossed paths for a reason. Perhaps I’ll see you speak on stage someday. That would be awesome. And if not, I’m confident that you’re motivating people already through that drive-thru. Motivating people to be kind, motivating people to be grateful, motivating people to love, motivating people to live, motivating people to live this day a little differently than they had prior to coming through your line.

So motivate on, Reno. I’m 100% behind you. You are the awesomest.

I do believe your call is to motivate, to love on people with your voice, with who you are.

So motivate on, Reno.

Motivate on.