I Dare to Be a Dreamer
I am a dreamer.
Not because I’m talented.
Not because I’m famous.
Not because I’m more capable.
Not because I’m the savior of the world.
I dream because I’m human.
I want something more out of this life. I want to live a life that’s worth remembering, a life that means something, not just for myself, but for as many people as I meet and get to know and touch. I want to make an impact and a difference.
I want to help people find the happiness that they hunger for in the depths of their hearts. I want to help them to be happier, more fulfilled, and the best that they can be.
When I was sixteen, I was speaking with a lady.
She came from a modest background and made a living as a housekeeper. I was telling her about my plans for life, some of my dreams, what I wanted to do when I grew up, how I wanted to dedicate my life in service, that I wanted to help make this world a better place.
After a while, I noticed that she wasn’t saying anything.
“Is everything alright?” I asked.
After a moment of silence, “Oh, yeah…no…I was just thinking… I’m just admiring your idealism.”
When she didn’t add anything else, I sensed she was holding something back. “What do you mean?”
“You’re still young. You still have so much to learn. But that’s what’s amazing with young people. Despite that, you have dreams for something more.”
I was perplexed, “Don’t you have dreams?”
She frowned. “When you get to my age, you’ll see that you shouldn’t expect so much from life. When you get older you’ll realize that not all your dreams and wishes come true. Life lets you down in so many ways.”
Her pessimism was putting a damper on things. “But we can dream…this world can get better, right? There’s always hope for better futures, better lives. I mean, see all those people who’ve made a difference, who are making a difference.”
“Maybe, but life’s not as easy as you think. Those people are gifted and extremely talented. One in a million.
“Keep dreaming. It’s part of what makes youth so beautiful, but when life hits you hard and your dreams fail don’t be surprised. In the end, dreams are just dreams and reality can be hard.
“You’ll have to just accept what life gives you and try to be happy with what you have.”
“The great challenge of adulthood is holding on to your idealism after you lose your innocence.” — Bruce Springsteen
Have we lost the capacity to dream?
Is it just something for the young and inexperienced? Are we meant to be cogs in the machine, supposed to live our everyday lives keeping our heads down, going with the flow, and trying to survive this time on earth?
Is hope for something better a useless fantasy? Some pie in the sky? Something that dies with experience and age? Does everything we do amount to nothing in the end? Can’t we dream?
If that’s the case, what do we want from this life? Why live? To endure one more day? To continue with the way things are? I don’t like the prospects of that.
Looking at the world today, we see so much sadness and so much misery. And I’m not talking just about the misery of poverty and sickness. I’m not talking about the misery of inequality or injustice. I’m not talking about the misery of heartbreak and divorce.
I’m talking about a misery that breaks the surface, the misery that goes deeper, which is at the base of so many problems that we see:
The misery of despair.
We can see the world around us and see all the issues and problems and difficulties on so many different levels, from the personal to the global and feel the futility of any attempt to solve it. There’s so much tragedy that we’ve grown used to it. Shocking stories, becoming the norm rather than the exception, don’t hold our attention anymore. A failed marriage, common. An abandoned child, same thing. World hunger, anything new?
Even with all the charities and organizations and good Samaritans in this world, problems never seem to go away. We can look at all this and ask “What’s the point? Why even try to make a difference? Who am I to make a difference in this world? I’m just me.”
And as we get older, challenges seem to appear more often in all shapes and sizes. The world pressures us to just do our part and keep our heads down. Just behave, hope for a good marriage, try to find a good job, and try to make a living. Just enjoy what life gives you. Stop dreaming.
But what would happen if we did so? If we stopped dreaming? What would happen if we just became pieces of the puzzle? What would happen to the world we live in? If you and I don’t do anything, who will?
Are we just going to give up and let it fall apart?
How will we ever better the situations we find ourselves in if we do not have dreams, if we do not fight for them, if we do not sacrifice to achieve them? If we do not dream, how will our society ever be as it should be?
Without hopes and without dreams, without longings and aspirations, without yearnings and desires, how will we ever survive?
Dreams are part of being human. They are things we must hold onto if we want to be true to ourselves.
No matter how dismal things become, no matter how dark the night seems to be, no matter how bleak the future seems to be, I refuse to stop dreaming.
Our world needs heroes, dreamers, people who’ll fight for something more. This life is ours and it’s up to us to make it mean something.
I refuse to sit and let this life pass me by.
I refuse to be another piece of the puzzle.
I refuse to stop believing in a better future.
I refuse to stop believing that there can be more to this life.
I refuse to stop believing that what I do can matter to others, can make their lives better, can make a difference, even just a little bit.
When I die, I don’t want to be remembered as a nice guy. I want to have died knowing that my life, my short stay on earth, was worth it. That I fought for something I believed in and, through my presence, made a difference.
It might be my youthful idealism or my innocent naiveté, but I’d rather live seeking the best rather than awaiting the worst. Wouldn’t you?
What kind of life do you want to live? What type of person do you want to be?
I dare to dream. Do you?
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