THE GHOST OF WANNABE. 

This is the first of a series of messages about the Ghosts of Wannabe.  We all experience the ghosts and shadows of life differently.  The journey may differ but the struggle is the same.

What is the Ghost of Wannabe?

We first become aware of the ghost of Wannabe as children.  I wannabe a butcher, baker, candlestick maker.  I wannabe rich and famous.  I wannabe a leader, a lover, a savior of the world.  Such an enjoyable ghost - who can be afraid?  She is so much fun to dance and play with.  Our parents may even encourage us to spend time with him.  He can lead us through so many wonderful daydreams - inspire us to look into all of the corners of our world.  Often she is more stimulating and interesting than our real world friends and playmates.  With the Ghost of Wannabe at our side, the world is ours for the taking.

But eventually this Ghost will come to haunt and taunt us.  After all, he is but an illusion - the sum total of all of our wishes, desires and imaginings.  She is not a reflection of our spirit - he does not know who we really are.  What is worse, he wants to possess us - to make us believe that we are really her - to think that true happiness can be found by following him.

But no matter how hard we try, we cannot be the Ghost of wannabe and live up to her expectations.  His allure clouds our vision and fills us with fear and frustration.  We no longer know who we really are.  We do not know what it is that will bring happiness and completion to our lives.  The wannabe specter is always their causing doubts and discontent.  She pries on our emotions and feelings.  He does not allow our true being in all its natural glory to surface.  No, we always wannabe somebody else.  We always wannabe doing something different.

So it is that our imaginary friend, the Wannabe Ghost, becomes that menacing phantom within us blinding us to ourselves.  The first step in exorcising this demon is to recognize him and carefully separate her delusion of ourselves from our true spirit and essence.  The Wannabe Ghoul wants us to measure ourselves by what others seem to be and to do.  Contrary to what the wannabe ghost would have us believe, we have our weaknesses as well as our strengths - and that is alright. 

There are some aspects of life that give us joy and satisfaction without having to wannabe something more.  There are other aspects of life, although tempting, are not worth the bother.  If we strive to be something or seek after something in order to gain fame or power or fortune, than this may well be a wannabe haunting.  Even it we accomplish it, we will never be satisfied. 

Here is one first step to discover ourselves (there are no easy answers).  Look to those bits of your life and being that bring satisfaction in themselves with NO external reason.  Gather these bits and start putting them together as you would a puzzle.  Soon the real you may begin to materialize.  This new vision of yourself may not appear to have any connection with a vocation or career or calling yet.  But be patient.