There are moments in life that sometimes we feel are impossible to overcome. I could list a thousand reasons when there are times like these. No matter how much we try to smile through the pain and hardship of life, there are days where it seems the skies will be eternally grey.
Lately, there has been a lot of tension within my own life. Writers are being culled as animals in a slaughter. Since August last year, within my own publishing company, the numbers of writers that I know who have lost their own deal has gone from twenty to three. The remanding three of us are clearly walking on eggshells laden with explosives.
Others have been offered the chance to be bought out of their deal and many have taken it. I have decided to be a little stubborn and see things through. It makes me wonder, that as humans, are we pressured into making decisions that the collective masses seem to follow.
My own interpretation is that the more time that we spend in the company of people the more we seem to think like a singular nucleus. One will form an idea or notion and it seems that this has some kind of domino effect on others and how we seem to live our lives. It’s not equated to the old adage of “leaping lemmings” but it certainly makes me question the resolve of others that have fought so long and hard for things that they have believed in.
If I did lose my publishing deal I would not be forced to start handing out the begging bowl but it would certainly hit a dent in the way I live my life. In these times where there is a mass attraction of self publishing, I still play by the old ways of being an old fashioned writer that wants to make his own way in life with hard work and sweat.
There are many writers that I know who have lost belief in their own ability through the avalanche of rejection letters that will come their way. I still have all mine in a folder, within visible reach of my “writing desk.” It’s a pure testament to how I will never give up in what I believe in.
It’s not just writers. There are so many people I know within sport, entertainment and in everyday jobs that each day they face the uncertainty of if they have a job at the end of the month. The harsh and cruel fact is that times are indeed hard for us all and it takes a certain resolve and resilience to become what we want to become. Unless we are living in a fictional “Wolf Of aWall Street” era then we only reap in life what we sew.
I still believe in that old adage that you only live once, life is no dress rehearsal and this is the only one chance that we have. If you have a dream then the onus is on us to find a reason to make that dream come true. The rewards are insignificant compared to the feeling of personal achievement.
I have decided to write my new movie script this year on a scenario like this. It is about one persons belief to overcome the insurmountable difficulties of being told that we cannot go any further. This one person has the courage and inspiration to make thousands believe in themselves. This will be no Rocky Balboa story, it will be a true reflection of the pains and toughness of overcoming the odds to ensure the dream stays alive.
For anyone out there regardless of what you do in life. Whatever dreams you have keep the flame of belief and success alive. For when that flame dies, so does the dream. Keep that fire burning bright.
