On Dreams

Rose Sculpture - City Park, New Orleans, Louisiana

"Happy talk,

Keep talkin’ happy talk,

Talk about things you’d like to do.

You gotta have a dream;

If you don’t have a dream,

How you gonna have a dream come true?"

“Happy Talk” (Rodgers/Hammerstein II)

© 1949, Copyright Renewed, Williamson Music Company (ASCAP) c/o Concord Music Publishing.

Dreams are important. They can inspire us to keep going in the tough times. They can encourage us to reach beyond what we think we are capable of.

But dreams can also be a trap - convincing us that because we did not achieve a dream, we have failed. I don't believe that. I believe not all dreams are meant to come true, not all dream aspirations are meant to be realized. Sometimes, the dream is the goal. They dream is what you need in the moment you need it.

Life changes. Fortunes change. Births, deaths, job changes, accidents, disability, windfalls, the list of potentially life changing events is endless.

And those changes mean that sometimes dreams have to change to match the new life situation you are in.

That is not a failure, not necessarily even a broken dream. It is just a dream that isn't useful anymore. A dream that no longer inspires or uplifts us. Those dreams can be let go.

Not with tears or mourning; although if you need to mourn a dream it is fine too.

But it is more than okay, it is healthy, to get comfortable letting go of dreams that no longer suit you and your life as it is now.

And it is also healthy to keep dreaming and keep finding new dreams.

Life will always have hard times. Dreams help us weather them.

Life will always have good times. Dreams help us make the best of them.

I'm delighted to be realizing 8 year-old Anne Marie's dream of being a writer.

I had gotten bogged down (again) by the lack of sales of my books, and was seriously blocked.

And then I remembered my dream was not to be a famous writer, but to be a writer. Along the way there have been dreams of best-sellers, and movie deals, and television series.

There is no harm in those dreams. They only have the power to harm me if I believe they need to come true.

Cherish your dreams! But remember to celebrate letting them go when they no longer bring you joy.