The Curse of Improbable Dreams – is it worth it?

The Curse of Improbable Dreams – is it worth it?

As I suffer from the curse of improbable dreams, I wonder if this extraordinary quest is really worth the time, money and effort

The topic of dream jobs came up at a recent meeting with a friend. I mentioned the New York Times' recent job posting for a journalist to travel the world for a year and cover destinations in their annual feature, "52 Places to Go."

“But aren’t you already doing that?” She asked. “Don’t you already have a dream job?”

In many ways she is right. Kia and I travel around the world for work. We get paid to do what we love: explore the outdoors. Granted, we miss many of the normal things in life – a home, a steady income, comfort – but we are happy and get to do things that many only dream of: real bucket list experiences.

Nevertheless, there are many unfulfilled dreams on my bucket list. My list is in a constant state of metamorphosis - elements are frequently added and removed - but there are some that remain invariable, most notably: climbing the Seven Peaks, the highest mountain on all continents.

alt=“Climbing Elbrus Elbrus-Summit-7″>Atlas & BootsAt the summit of Elbrus, Europe's highest mountain

The ever-present items on my bucket list

Climb the seven peaks (four down, three to go) Sail across the AtlanticLive in a foreign countryVisit 100 countries (85 so far)Write a bookHike the Arctic Trail in GreenlandFlying a planeJump out of a plane

It is common knowledge that you can achieve anything you want in life if you put your mind to it. Social media posts will quote The Alchemist and tell you that if you really want something, the entire universe conspires to help you achieve it... but I don't think that's true.

I don't believe in fate or destiny. I don't even think that brute persistence will make your most unlikely dreams come true.

Consider mine: climbing the seven peaks. It will likely cost around $100,000 to climb the remaining three peaks. I can learn the skills needed, I can get fit enough, and I can be stubborn enough to try, try, and try again.

It's not about brute strength, skill or fitness - I've laid out a step-by-step process for climbing the seven peaks - but unless I win the lottery, I can't imagine ever having the money to climb the seven peaks.

I think that's the curse of improbable dreams: you know you'll probably never achieve them, but you can't quench the thirst. You keep going with the hope that one day you will achieve it, no matter how unlikely the feat is.

The curse of unlikely dreams

Kia mentions in the Gift of Bilingualism that she collects quotes and phrases that inspire her. Among them is “to the coming true of your most incredible dream” from the film “Another Earth”. It is the pursuit of these words and the promise they hold that drives me.

For a country boy from the flattest part of Britain to climb even four of the seven peaks - Elbrus in Europe, Kilimanjaro in Africa, Aconcagua in South America and Kosciuszko in Australia - is an unlikely feat. Should I even continue this unrealistic search? Is it really worth the time, money and effort? If I were a betting man, I would bet against myself.

But while I certainly suffer from the curse of unlikely dreams, deep within me there is a kernel of hope that I will one day achieve this goal. Even if I only climbed one or two more of the seven, I would feel more accomplished knowing I was as close as I could. After all, I would rather have dreams that I won't achieve than not have any at all.

I know it's cliche, but maybe the old aphorism really is true: "Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars."

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Mission statement: Atlas & Boots

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