Do you remember the book “Where’s Waldo?” For us North Americans his name was Waldo but in UK he is known as Wally. Whether you called him ‘Waldo’ or ‘Wally’ is irrelevant, the point is that most of us used to spend hours trying to find him on a page full of other characters, unique settings and bright colours. I remember days going by as I sat searching for little Waldo in his red and white stripy shirt and his google-eyed glasses.
Recently I was having a chat with a friend about his direction in life. Like most of my friends who have recently graduated from university, he has no idea what he wants to do. While expressing thoughts about how he feels like he should be doing SOMETHING, he maintains that he just can’t pin point what that SOMETHING is.
Some find it helpful to be rational and practical when planning their future, direction or purpose, but I believe that when one dreams, envisions, and lets their mind expand to see the world of possibilities, they gain the most momentum.
Inside everyone lies this deep sensation that should remind of them of their life’s ‘purpose’. Deeply embedded into what I perceive as our inner core, it sometimes feels hard to reach yet you KNOW it’s there. Similarly, when looking at a page out of “Where’s Waldo” you find it difficult to see him YET you know he is there…somewhere.
Consider a page from “Where’s Waldo?” to be similar to your life and Waldo to be your life’s purpose. When you initially try to find Waldo all you can see are the things that CLOUD your ability to find him. These can be compared to your past experiences and memories – who you used to be and who used to be in your life. In addition, your life is clouded by your present situation – what’s going on and who surrounds you on a day to day basis.
However, there is this beautiful area on your page where your dreams, desires and wants for the future lie. This is often the area that WALDO resides. The biggest problem about finding Waldo is that he evolves and changes from page to page…and from book to book. On one page he may be wearing a hat or glasses and on another he may have a cane. YET, there is always the similarity of his white and red striped shirt.
Consequently, the only way to find Waldo is to look EVERYWHERE on the page.
How do you find your life’s ‘purpose’?
Try SIFTING through all of the ‘crap’ that clouds your mind. Sometimes this means looking into the past and remembering all of your life changing experiences from where you are now, and sometimes this means SIMPLY being aware of the present moment.
Dare to vision. Dare to dream. Dare to be just that little bit different.
And remember, once you find it, it’s like you can’t believe you couldn’t see it.
