Achieving a Dream - My Dad's Story

And we're off and running, and of course, adding a check at LJ for my daily Bingo prompt is something I'll probably have to work into time at the shop. No time in the mornings here with just slightly over an hour from wake-up to bundle up. Still, I'm looking forward to seeing how writing can fold into my life again, because working on my art requires space I don't have until the BIG CLEAN is finally finished. 

It can be really hard to achieve a goal, but if it is something
that you really want, you'll find a way. 

Goals - they can be difficult to set, and almost impossible to achieve, but sometimes goals can be met years later in different places and times. My Dad was a perfect example of this. He wanted a higher education - wanted to go to college (it was called University in Europe, but same idea - higher education). It never happened for him. War, poverty and other parts of life got in the way. It was a dream never realized and a goal never met. 

A goal can look at if it's so far away you'll never reach it.
Sometimes that's just perspective, however, The goal
can be closer than you think. 

After escaping Europe and setting up a new life in America, he had to work to support his family. He was seriously ill for a long time, and while in and out of the hospital, was taught a trade. He became a bookkeeper, a type of non-certified accountant, doing the monthly account books for small businesses throughout the metro area, but without the higher education mandated by being an accountant. He made a good living at it. He walked the streets, cold-called thousands of businesses, and set up great word-of-mouth clients, enough to hire several other people to work for him over time. 

All goals start with baby steps and each step builds on
prior ones. There's no time clock for personal
goals, just the feeling of happiness you get
when you succeed at each stage. 

His dreams were on a very cold and dusty back burner. Finally he was able to retire. He had saved enough money to support him and Mom, and they would be OK through their last decades. He looked at his long-stored dream again, and enrolled in college. This was one year before I enrolled in college, so it was a bit annoying having competition in my own household. He loved education, dove into the deep end and never looked back. 

CU is nestled into the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. It's a
beautiful campus. I attended college up the road at Colorado State
University, Dad had a scholarship to CU. Since he didn't
drive during all of these educational years, he took the bus
everywhere - a long trip to and fro. 

His Bachelor's degree led to a scholarship for his Master's. His Master's degree led to a scholarship for his PhD, and his PhD led to several books and a teaching gig at the University of Colorado, Boulder campus. In all that time, every grade he made was an A. He was doing what he loved. When he died, he was finishing up another book, which was taken up and completed by a colleague at CU. 

Happy birthday to my Dad. Long gone, never forgotten. 

Yes, dreams can come true. Even dreams held tightly for decades. Happy birthday, Dad. I miss you. 

Have a great Friday, dive into B2MeM - I'll be checking in on that shortly - and I'll return tomorrow. Of course, since we had a day off from snow yesterday, we're supposed to get 2"-6" today. *sigh* No rest for the wicked or the good this winter season.