Continuing with my Cirque musings, I was thinking after writing last night’s post about how I used to want to work at the Cirque du Soleil headquarters in Montreal, Quebec. I’ve applied online a few times over the years, but the biggest issue for me is that they apparently require their employees to be fluent in French.

My current gig has taught me a little about Canada due to the Canadian media buys we make for some of our clients. I haven’t learned the language, of course, but I’ve learned that the majority of Quebec is French-speaking, and those that speak English — while they do live in Montreal — are bilingual (one guess what their other language is). So, pretty good reason for that requirement on Cirque’s job application section of their site.

(Not that I’m looking.)

I used to dream of moving to far away (cold) places and unleashing serious marketing genius on one of the most captivating brands on the planet: Cirque du Soleil. I didn’t know where I’d live, I didn’t know if I could afford to move to Montreal, but I knew I really, really, desperately wanted to do it.

But that French thing…

Enter: Rosetta Stone. It’s been on my Christmas list for years, and I still have nary a volume from which to start learning. This is mostly my fault, because on one hand, I get that others won’t want to fork over the dough to purchase such a thing — after all, I don’t want to, either. On the other hand, really — is it fair to put a price on a dream?

I’ve decided that dreams, not unlike something I wrote in a recent post, have a lot to do with priorities. It’s one thing to think it would be great to do something someday, but it’s entirely another to dub something a “dream” and do something about it. I’m a big believer in having the right tools to get to that path that could lead you to your dream. It may not be a straight shot, and there may be bumps along the way that delay your progress. But if you don’t invest, either time-wise or otherwise, the chances of that dream coming to fruition are slim, at best.

I’ve also decided that Rosetta Stone is a facilitator of dreams. Used the world over by folks who have dreamed of fitting in on their journeys to distant lands, used by applicants who dream of having a leg up on their competition during the job application and interview process; used by people who simply want to cross something off their bucket list, and used by people who dream of simply keeping their mind sharp and their brain agile during their later years.

Nope — not just a tool. It’s a dream facilitator.

Working at the Cirque Headquarters is a dream that has since gathered a layer of dust so thick that it would give any allergy-sufferer nightmares for months on end, as there have since become others that I’ve spent my time on. That dream of helping craft such a magically delightful brand is still there, but it’s distant. I don’t regret that it’s essentially been shelved, because I like that the dream facilitator can be purchased swiftly and put into motion whenever I wish. If not to follow through on the Cirque dream, then to perhaps enable another dream (Italian vacation? Trip to Greece?) instead.

This evening I am thankful for the existence of not just “tools,” but for access to the things that can help make a dream a reality… and which can take our lives in completely different directions — if only we allow ourselves to dream.