My daughter and I have a saying that we like to use on each other at the appropriate times--usually when one of us is standing our ground, fiercely defending our reasons for "that maybe true but it will never work in my case and let me tell you why...":))
You can't have everything you want....
But you can have anything you want
Case in point? The Herb and Dorothy story.
"Herbert Vogel, a postal clerk, and Dorothy Vogel, a librarian, managed to build one of the most important contemporary art collections in history with very modest means. In the early 1960s, when very little attention was paid to Minimalist and Conceptual Art, Herb and Dorothy Vogel quietly began purchasing the works of unknown artists. Devoting all of Herb's salary to purchase art they liked, and living on Dorothy's paycheck alone, they continued collecting artworks guided by two rules: the piece had to be affordable, and it had to be small enough to fit in their one-bedroom Manhattan apartment.
After thirty years of meticulous collecting and buying, the Vogels managed to accumulate over 2,000 pieces, filling every corner of their tiny one bedroom apartment. "Not even a toothpick could be squeezed into the apartment," recalls Dorothy. In 1992, the Vogels decided to move their entire collection to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. The vast majority of their collection was given as a gift to the institution. Many of the works they acquired appreciated so significantly over the years that their collection today is worth millions of dollars. Still, the Vogels never sold a single piece. Today Herb and Dorothy still live in the same apartment in New York with 19 turtles, lots of fish, and one cat. They've refilled it with piles of new art they've acquired."
This story reminds me of others I have known in my life--like Evelyn.
Evelyn was in her late 70's, had never flown, never traveled. Well, Evelyn got wind of a opportunity to go on an Alaskan cruise with a group of senior citizens. Although it was way out of Evelyn's budget, she started talking it up, planning , dreaming and scheming. She worked extra hours, saved and scraped, and guess who went on their trip of a life time at age 78? Evelyn of course. You couldn't wipe the grin off her face for months after her return!
My dad had a saying that I never really understood 'til I was older--usually thrown in when people started bandying about excuses for things in their life they weren't happy with, missed opportunities, reasons for being late all the time, etc., etc.
"A feller does what a feller wants to do."
Which after my years of living, I now conclude meant---we choose what we want, what's left falls into the excuse category. Herb and Dorothy didn't make excuses about having a passion for something but not being able to afford it. Evelyn didn't talk about traveling to faraway places while saying it could never be her because she was too old and didn't have the money.
It comes down to simply knowing what is it that you really want.
Remember, you can have anything you want.
What do you really, really want??
Pin It
