Discovering Purpose - Childhood

Many people don’t know this, but as a young girl, I had this BIG dream of enrolling at The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising and majoring in fashion design. I wanted to design clothes and curate fashion shows that supported non-profits doing great work around the world. More specifically, I wanted to raise money through these fashion shows to help stop the genocide happening in Darfur, Sudan. I remember every Friday we’d get this fashion section in the local newspaper, and I’d look through all the latest fashion trends dreaming of a day I could create my designs or afford to wear them. Most importantly, I wanted to use that platform to give back. I would cut out clothing I loved, sticking each cut out onto white paper. Next, to each cutout, I would draw my renditions of complete outfits to go with whatever item I pasted onto each sheet of paper. 

We all have regrets, and one regret I had was forgoing that dream out of fear. Fear of the financials and fear that choosing to pursue a career in fashion design wouldn’t be acceptable to the sacrifices my parents had made. 

Crazy to think that at an early age, I put limitations on my dreams. 

However, I’ve made peace with that decision because, I didn’t know, and although the medium of the vision changed, the passion I had then is still the same now, to help those in need.

I recorded this video having no idea what would transpire in Sudan weeks later. The atrocities are happening to people that are courageous enough to fight and believe for a better future for themselves, their families, and their nation. Here I am faced with the reality that a tremendous amount of the limitations I've ever encountered in life, came from the simple restriction of self. With this realization, I am quickly reminded that this ability is a blessing I can't take for granted and that it is never too late to reignite visions or dreams and to pursue them no matter the cost.

I look at the fruit in the lives of those people I told this dream to as a young girl, those people who encouraged me and gave me random opportunities to be a part of what they were doing. I sometimes wonder what my life would be if I grasped what they saw then, and saw what I see now. However, we can’t change the past; we can only make better decisions for the future, and slowly but surely pave our ways.

My question for you today, what dream(s) do you need to reignite? Who inspired you and encouraged you in them? Do you have people like that in your life now? And, if you do, hold them close and say thank you.