“You can’t depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus.”  Mark Twain

 

Friday evenings used to be called our “cocktail hour” nights.  We would gather at a bar or at someone’s house, have appetizers and cocktails, talking, laughing and making big plans for the next day or for a future play date.  My friend called it the Superman Syndrome.  While we were drinking, we thought we could do anything. But morning came, and we felt like crap, most of those exciting plans didn’t sound so grand anymore.

It’s amazing how many great plans ended up being stupid ideas the next day.  Some we would do anyway.  I’d drag and push myself to move, trying to act like I didn’t have a headache and that my stomach wasn’t churning.  I plastered a smile on my red, blotchy face and went along with it anyway.

I remember one evening we all decided that riding horses at a friend’s house was a grand idea for the next day’s activity.  We had two horse trailers and four horses at four different locations.  I was one of the lucky ones with a horse trailer.  So, I set out at 8 a.m., feeling like total crap, to travel to my boarding facility, hook up my trailer, catch my horse, grab all the tack for her and move on to the next location.  By the time we collected the horses and got to the barn to ride, I was exhausted, had a dry mouth and was shaking; I was totally hungover.

We rode, we drank some more, and luckily had no accident. By the time the horses were brought back to their stables and tucked away, the trailer was unhooked and I was back in bed, my body was completely beaten down and tired.  Superwoman I was not.

Today my ideas are dreamed up and thought through with a clear head. No Superwoman cape needed.  I still make big plans, but they are logical and practical. When I ride my horses today, I thoroughly enjoy the process. I ride safely — not drunk or hungover.  I notice the beauty of the land and I smell the roses.  By the time the horses are safely in their stalls, I am tired, but not exhausted. My body aches from riding, not from a hangover.

I still like to be Superwomen in my own mind, because I don’t ever want to stop dreaming big.  The difference is that I manifest my dreams or live out my plans on God’s timing, not mine.  I make plans, I cancel plans, I do them another day. I manage my days with a healthy heart, body and mind.

Becoming sober and living this healthier lifestyle makes dreaming possible.  I can’t imagine going back to the life I had, when all plans were centered around drinking. Now I live day by day. And every day I put my best foot forward. When I go to bed at night, I know that I did the best I could.  I see every tomorrow as a new day and a new venture.  When I keep my head clear, my imagination soars. How clear is your head?