PROMISED LAND

Many people believe that to talk about the good things you hope for is to tempt fate to withholding these very things from you. (For those who knock on wood after talking about big dreams.) I am partial to agree.

When I was tiny and attending summer gymnastics camp, I remember the daily lecture halls they corralled us into after lunch to hear a sports therapist discuss the importance of stretching or some related topic. One that stands out in my mind, however, is the lecturer who talked to us about mental envisioning. In 1995, the sports world was just discovering the importance of mental training, which added that crucial 2% to an athlete's performance to put them over the top. In gymnastics, with floor, bar or beam routines lasting all of two minutes and vault lasting about 9 seconds, it is reasonable to encourage gymnasts to spend a portion of each day mentally experiencing each second of their routines, preparing their brains for the flawless routine that they so badly want.

Later in life, I met a man of unparalleled ambition who explained the importance of envisioning the future and taught me about cognitive behavioral therapy, or, in simplifying shorthand, "See-it-be-it thinking". This paradigm reinforced my belief in the power of proactive, positive thinking.

I have long been a journal keeper and have spent countless pages writing out visions of myself in the future. Yesterday, because I am dreaming of Something Big at the moment, I indulged myself on my one-day-off-in-14 and laid around in the park dreaming out a letter to future Kimmy, full of goals, ambitions and hope. The contents are well intentioned promises to my heart, to my future self and to future others who will hopefully be working with me at that time. As much as I want to share it today (I really, really want to share it.), I feel I have to live it first. Perhaps in the future, the contents will spill out into the world. Hopefully sooner rather than later.