To be a Dreamer

Everyone dreams, but not all try to achieve them, to reach for a seemingly unattainable goal. Why are some people driven by their dreams and others ignore them? I remember when I was a child and I would have the most outlandish dreams; everything from  pirates to Archaeologists. I would lay awake at night and think of wild adventures and danger. I was, of course, the super hero in my dreams; boldly charging into every challenge to win the day or rescue the fair maiden.

I was a lonely child even though I was surrounded by family and friends. I turned inward to seek my own solace, even having an imaginary friend named Michael. Together we would build forts and play soldiers, camouflaging ourselves and spying on unsuspecting neighbors. It was a sad and wondrous time for me. Sad, because I felt so alone, and wondrous, because my inward reality had no limit.

It seems as we age our dreams become less important, or maybe more life centered, catering to our own careers and family life. I still dream of places I would like to see and sailing to far away shores, perhaps that's why I chose the path that I am on. I am still an introvert, often gazing into space, my mind a thousand miles away. Some people might mistake me as arrogant for ignoring them, but I'm probably not even in the same room mentally. I don't really care what people think about me anyway; I am who I am and happy with it.

If we didn't dream and imagine a life different from the ordinary we would still be in the stone age. Dreamers have always pushed the boundary of "what is" and found a way to achieve the "could be". Our world, in just the last hundred years, has changed more than in the last ten thousand. Much of the accelerated change has come through war and a pulling away from the ignorance and superstition of religion, but they started with someones dream.

Many people that read my statement about  religion will be shocked and they are welcome to their own opinion; but, the world was full of dreamers before religion dictated our lives for two thousand years, people like Aristotle, Archimedes, Plato etc. Much of their writings have been lost or destroyed during religious purges including the burning of the great library of Alexandria. Ghandi said it best "I like your Christ, its your Christians that I despise".When we started coming out of the fog of religion during the Renaissance, ideas and dreams became a reality. Perhaps that is why we have come so far, so fast; pent up energy and free thinking exploded outward, and we are still pushing our horizons today.

God gave us the ability to dream and the reasoning skills to achieve them, so close your eyes and let your mind wander. You may be surprised where the journey takes you or the goals you set out to accomplish. I know I am well on the way to living mine, after all I dream about it everyday.