This evening I’m going to share part of someone else’s story, with her permission. First, though, a bit of backstory. Judy was a friend/older sister to me from when I was about 11 years old until I started college. I admired her zest for life, her spunkiness, her great sense of humor, and her honesty. Judy was the type of woman who didn’t wait for others to do something — she rolled up her own sleeves and got the job done!

Unfortunately, over the years that my family lived in Texas, New Mexico, back in Texas, and finally back home in Missouri, I was so busy with my children and work that Judy and I drifted apart. Happily, a few years ago we reconnected and began chatting via private messages on Facebook. I discovered that Judy and I have more in common now than we probably did back when I was younger. She shared with me that as a retiree whose children are grown and live in other states, she longed to sell her house and move to a place she had visited and fallen in love with — Wilmington, North Carolina.

I visited Judy one weekend a few months ago, and she shared her plan with me. She had already begun getting her house ready to put on the market; once it was sold, she would put her furniture and most of her possessions in storage, move to Wilmington, and rent an apartment to live in while she figured out where in the city she wanted to live on a more permanent basis. Then she would have her things shipped to her new home. She hoped to be in Wilmington by winter.

Things moved quickly after my visit. Judy sold her house much sooner than she expected, put her items in storage, and moved to Wilmington last month! She did what I want to do. Oh, I don’t necessarily want to move to Wilmington, North Carolina, although everything I’ve heard and read paints a very appealing picture, but I want to follow in her footsteps in a more general sense. I want to know — with absolute certainty — where I want to move. And then, I want to make it happen — find a job, sell my home, and make the move.

I said in the opening paragraph that I admired Judy when I was a young girl. Well, I admire her even more now. I’m sure she had some reservations about making this big change, and I’m sure it wasn’t easy to leave the town she had lived in for over 35 years to move half-way across the country to a city where she knew not a single person. But she did it anyway. She had a dream, and she rolled up her sleeves and made that dream become reality. She has inspired me to do the same.

Do you have a dream, one that tugs at your heart and your soul? What is keeping you from making it a reality? I hope you will share both your dreams and any roadblocks (through either a comment below or an email to aliferedesigned@yahoo.com. And if you’ve already overcome obstacles to make a much-desired major life change, I hope you’ll share that as well. Later this week, I’ll share what I’ve learned about the most common obstacles and share some ideas about how to get started making your dreams a reality.