22. Following your dreams

...and then there were two

It’s that time of year again. A few days ago the sheep from our croft were rounded up and separated from their lambs. It’s an important part of the crofting year in villages all over the Hebrides and it always follows a familiar pattern. For a few days at the end of August, the motherless lambs are noticeably distressed and their incessant bleating is enough to give Clarice Starling nightmares. Nick and I faced our own separation anxiety this time last year when our son Charlie left for University and now change is looming once again. This week will be another difficult milestone for our family as our youngest Sarah leaves the island to study music at University in Ayr.

Sarah is a force of nature. Anyone who knows her would describe her as incredibly hard working, a perfectionist, an overachiever and those of us who love her know she is an amazing daughter, granddaughter, sister and friend. Sarah is also a very talented musician. Just a couple of months after we moved to Harris in 2014 Tarbert School hosted the annual Mòd na Hearadh which is a festival of Gaelic music, art and drama. Much to everyone’s surprise the shy new girl agreed to enter the Gaelic singing competition…and she won! For the next six years Sarah sang every day, learnt to play guitar and travelled all over Scotland competing with the School Choir. And just like that …. She had found her passion.

It’s probably obvious that we are very proud of our kids, but we’re not smug. It’s quite likely that they turned out great despite us … not because of us! There is, however, one part of parenting that we are confident we did well and that is inspiring our kids to follow their dreams. It’s the way we have always lived our lives and it’s something we feel very strongly about. Since we opened the shop in May we have had many conversations with customers who have a dream of moving to Harris or starting a small business and we give the same advice we gave to our kids. If it’s what you want to do you will do it well. Maybe it’s the power of positive thinking, or as our GenZ kids would say manifestation, but it’s true.

Sometimes the fear that exists between our dreams and making these dreams a reality can hold us back. Taking a leap of faith and moving to Harris, starting the Brewery or opening the shop all of these decisions have been scary, and its been hard work realising our dreams but it has been thoroughly worth it. Before moving to Harris we ran a large business we worked long hours and we earned a lot of money. Now we run a tiny business, we still work long hours and we earn very little, but when you’re doing what you love that’s real success! 

Now we're on the other side it's easy to tell other people to “Follow your Dream” but doing what you love takes courage and doing a job you love can still be hard work. The often used quote.       

“Choose a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life”

is well meaning but surely a bit simplistic. Loving your job is a wonderful thing. If you love your job, not only are you bringing home the bacon, but you also get the reward and satisfaction of doing a job well. It’s human nature to enjoy the things we’re good at. And, in order to be good at your job, you need to put in some serious hard work. It’s our passion that motivates us to get up early in the morning to label beers and work through the night brewing and bottling. Maybe what this quote should really say is “the more you love your job the harder you work”

So this weekend as we wave Sarah off on her new adventure, there will be tears. We will miss her but we’ll also be excited for what’s to come and proud of her for having the courage to do what she loves. And to everyone following their dreams, we wish you Safe Travels.