Dare To Dream



Hello lovelies! How are you all? First and foremost I must apologise for my lack of blog posts this last two weeks. I've had a few other projects on the go including my novel which had sort of been pushed to one side for a while there, but I've really been feeling creative of late so I'm back on with it!

Today's post is actually more of a story. I was told it a couple of weeks ago and wanted to share it with all of you in the hope that you take something positive from it.

There was a car crash involving a young boy. And although the boy survived the accident, the emergency team had no choice but to amputate his left arm in order to save his life.

As you can imagine losing a limb must be pretty horrific for anyone. But take a moment to imagine what it would be like as a child, your whole life ahead of you, and suddenly you can't do all the things you took for granted just yesterday.

Luckily these days there are many aids available to ensure a person can live a mostly fulfilled life. But what if your lifelong dream suddenly seemed an impossibility?

You see, the young boy had dreamed of mastering Judo. I'm sure most of you have heard of Judo but for the benefit of those that perhaps haven't, it's essentially a modern marital art.

The boy approached a Judo master, pleading with him to give him a chance. Reluctantly the Judo master agreed and so began lessons. The master taught him his first move and instructed him to practice. After weeks of doing this same one move the boy became frustrated and asked why he couldn't learn more moves with the rest of the class. But the Judo master told him no, keep on practicing that one move. Obediently the boy continued practicing.

Months passed by and the boy heard about a competition coming up in which one pupil from the class would be picked to enter. Disheartened in the knowledge that he'd never be picked, he carried on practicing his one move and gave no more thought to it. To his surprise the following week, the Judo master informed the boy that he had in fact entered him into the competition.

On the day of the tournament, the boy took on his first opponent. He waited for the right opportunity to use his one move and won the first round. The second opponent came face to face with the boy and again waiting for the perfect moment, he used his one move and took the opponent down thereby winning the second round. Now in the final, the boy grew nervous as he saw his opponent was much bigger and well built than him. The boy took a thrashing and the referee even wanted to call the fight off. But the boy's Judo master insisted he fight on. Waiting for the perfect moment, the boy finally got the chance to use his one move and by doing so he won the tournament and became the champion against all the odds.

Travelling home later that day, the boy still couldn't believe he'd won the tournament. He asked his Judo master how he'd been so sure that he could win. The Judo master explained that firstly, the boy had practiced his one move until it was perfection. Secondly, for anyone to get out of that move, they'd need to grab their opponents left arm... And as the boy had no left arm, the opponent couldn't defend himself...

So why have I shared this story with you? I want you to take what you want or indeed what you need from it. Since hearing it myself I've googled and found different versions online. I still don't know for sure if it's a true story or not, but regardless I think the sentiment behind it is heart warming and inspiring.

For me? I like to think that it means ANYTHING is possible. That dreams can come true if we only dare to try. I encourage all of you to go forth and dream big!

Have a fabulous week.

Love Justine xxx

*Please note I have re-told this story as best I can remember from how I originally heard it. Apologies for any errors.