DAY 17 - DREAM ON

Day 17

Today, I brought my daughter to her skating lessons. I was looking at her gracious 24-year-old instructor and I began wondering if, maybe, she once had the Olympic dream. So many athletes work hard for years and years, every single day, every single week, in pursuit of that ultimate goal. When they realize they will never reach it, they are emotionally crushed, destroyed. Some will take years to recover from that heartbreak. But although not all dreams can be attained, should one stop dreaming for fear of failure? And what purpose does dreaming serve?

When we are young and life is ahead of us, dreaming of the future only requires imagination. The realm of possibilities is endless. But what happens when you age? What happens at 50, 60, 70, 80? What happens if you didn’t become the music star you so desperately wanted to become or if you simply don’t feel like you’ve accomplished what you wanted? Of course, recovering from the pain of disillusionment takes time. But if we choose to live, we HAVE TO keep on dreaming.
To celebrate her 90th birthday, Grace LaVerne went skydiving. Seventy-five year old Sarah Jones, better known as Paddy, took up salsa following the death of her husband. Last December, after five years of intensive dancing, she won the Spanish version of ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ with her Spanish salsa instructor who is 40 years younger than her. Lorna Page is one of the oldest debut writers on record. She was 93 years old when she published her first novel.
Age is just a number... and although it is true that at 90 years old, you probably don’t have much more time to live, why should you stop dreaming and living before you actually die. Why not enjoy every single breath till the breathing stops. So many people let themselves be consumed by the passing of time. The reality of the end is unavoidable. In the meantime, dream on!