To chase down a dream!
Sorry I’ve been MIA but we just finished the movie, For Colored Girls, and
I have to tell you, I have new respect for Ntozake Shange’s 1975 writings.
Listening to these words spoken through the voices of Phylicia Rashad,
Kerry Washington, Tessa Thompson, Macy Gray, Kimberly Elise, Thandie
Newton, Whoopi Goldberg, Janet Jackson and Loretta Devine, made me not
only respect the brilliance of the material, but also pull out everything
in me to do my best to give it the care and attention to detail that it
deserved. Out of all that I’ve ever done in my life, nothing has taken
more out of me than this film. It is remarkable.
Being so drained, I decided to take a few days off. Yesterday I was
hiking a mountain in Hawaii with a friend. I was laboring up this
beautiful green pastured mountain, looking down at my feet trying to be
sure of my footing, while at the same time trying to catch my breath from
the altitude. At times, I would make big steps, sometimes all I could do
was take small ones. The terrain was uneven and rough at times. It took
a lot of effort and a lot of thought so, needless to say, I was getting
really tired and at times wanted to stop or just turn back.
I got to one peak and I thought “I’m here, great, we can rest now” only to
realize that just because I was at the top of one peak, that didn’t mean I
had arrived. There were more…more valleys to go through and more heights
to reach. It was interesting to me, that in order to go higher, we
usually had to go down through a valley, and it went on and on and up and
up. I was tired and wanted to sit down but my friend said, “Come on,
let’s go a little higher.” So, not to be outdone by a girl (lol), I dug
my hiking boots in and went a little higher. We finally got to one of the
highest points and she said to me, “This is the best part, now turn
around.” I turned around and behind me was the most amazing view that I
had seen in my 40 years on this earth. As far as my eyes could see,
beauty reigned. The Hawaiian Islands seemed to be leaping up out of the
silver blue sea, stretching up to catch the dust of the sky. The clouds
seemed close enough to catch in my hand and make a wish; rays of sunlight
danced through them trying to find a path to show off their own glow and
power. Not even Picasso could have out-painted the canvas that was before
me. The heavens were declaring the glory of God. I saw Him in motion.
I said to my friend, “When did we get this high?”, and she said, “It was
in the climb.” I couldn’t help but think about life – mine and maybe even
yours. I thought about how hard it had been for me chasing down my dream.
I thought about how hard it can be to believe sometimes. I thought about
the entire struggle, all of the pain, all of the hope, all of the doubt.
I thought about the times I was working a dead end job, trying to believe;
moving through day-to-day with my head down just taking one step at a
time, some small, some big ones, wanting to give up; wanting to stop and
sit for a while; wanting to lay in my sorrow; nobody believing in me;
nobody thinking it would come to pass and never realizing that every step
was taking me closer to higher. That hike was painful, it hurt, but
through it all I was getting higher and had no idea how high I was.
That’s what it’s like to chase down a dream.
Sometimes in life dreams are hard to follow, like that climb. You don’t
know how high you’re going or even if you’re moving, but every step, even
when you can’t see what’s behind you, will take you closer to your goals.
It’s in the climb. I know you may be struggling right now, but you’re in
the climb; things may be hard right now, but you’re in the climb; people
may not believe in you, but it’s part of the climb. They may take shots
at you, but stay in the climb; you may have to stand alone, but you’re in
the climb. Even if you’re not where you want to be right now, I want to
say to you what she said to me, “This is the best part, now turn around.”
Look how far you’ve come. God has not brought you this far to leave you.
Stay in the climb.
So thankful for all of you. Be well. CLIMB!
Tyler Perry
