On this day, how can we not reflect on the power of dreaming? The ability to see beyond what is, and imagine what might be--what should be. Many people will say that actions change the world, and while I can't argue against such pragmatism, I can argue that without vision there would be no purpose or direction for those actions.
Legendary basketball coach, John Wooden, once said, "Never mistake activity for achievement." I think he meant that just because you're doing something, it doesn't necessarily make it worthwhile. Actions, without forethought and without design, are often misplaced and/or futile. That's where the dreaming kicks in.
Dreaming can give an identity to a goal. It can give substance to something that has yet to be properly defined. Think of it this way: If life were a sandwich, dreams/ambitions would be the top slice of bread, action would be the meat, and the outcomes/goals would be the bottom slice of bread. Without any one piece, you don't really have a sandwich.
I realize that writers need very little schooling on this concept; after all, most of us are dreamers by our very nature. We're the PhD's of 'What if?" However, we sometimes need to be reminded that dreaming is okay. Imagining things as being either better or worse than what they are can have real value. It is neither wasted time, or a frivolity of those with too little to do.
Today, we honor a man who did just that. A man who refused to see reality as being sufficient. As a small token of my gratitude, I'd like to share some profound thoughts on dreaming, and hopefully inspire a few more people--if only for today--to move beyond what they know.
“Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today.” ~ James Dean
“You see things; and you say, 'Why?' But I dream things that never were; and I say, 'Why not?'” ~ George Bernard Shaw
“A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.” ~ Oscar Wilde
“Dreams are illustrations... from the book your soul is writing about you.” ~ Marsha Norman
“Dreams are today's answers to tomorrow's questions.” ~ Edgar Cayce
“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” ~ C.S. Lewis
“If one advances confidently in the direction of one's dreams, and endeavors to live the life which one has imagined, one will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” ~ Henry David Thoreau
“Do not lose hold of your dreams or aspirations. For if you do, you may still exist but you have ceased to live.” ~ HDT
"Everything that we see is a shadow cast by that which we do not see." ~ MLK, Jr.
-EJW-
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