realist or idealist?

I’m a realist in many ways but, like any personality trait, it’s not that black and white. With some things I’m an idealist…almost to a fault. And it’s those things that can drive me batty.

Sometimes it’s a struggle to determine how big to dream and how our dreams translate into our realities. Shannon over at divulgence asked that question today. I think this especially enters into the picture when talking about things like self improvement and making a difference in the world.

I like what Mother Teresa says about love and service. I especially like reading her views on these things because she was a very real, very simple and normal person who was tackling a very real, very complex and huge problem by “eating the elephant one bite at a time”.

In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love.
Mother Teresa

I fell in love with this quote when I heard it and it was what sent me on a quest to learn more about Mother Teresa. Not only do I agree with her, the statement is rich beyond just the actual words.

I think in anything we dream of, and in anything we do, we should dream big and start small. Because if we wait until we can do great things, chances are we’ll never do anything.

We also have to be careful about the language and ideals of greatness. To strive for greatness is most often folly. And it can very often lead to huge frustration if we’re talking about “saving souls” or helping the poor or whatever “cause” we happen to be taking up at that moment.

We have to take life one challenge, one issue at a time, start a journey one step at a time, embark on an adventure one plan at a time and remember that the journey is a destination unto itself (nod to Oswald Chambers)

[tags]Mother Teresa, Oswald Chambers, dream, justice[/tags]

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