Dream, as defined by Webster’s New World Dictionary, is a noun meaning, “a fancy of the conscious mind; a fond hope or aspiration.” What any dictionary fails to include is the absence of fulfilled dreams. The definition excludes the fact that a dream is just as real as wishing on a shooting star. Many people dream about their careers, love, or the impact they wish to make on the world; how many of these people’s dreams actually come true? Depending on the person, this word can mean something radically different. One can have a dream, and because the aspiration is so strong, they can pursue it and do literally everything in their power to attain that dream; they make their dream a reality. At the same time though, some dreams remain out of reach and control of the dreamer. To others, however, dreams remain a fancy or fond hope, because they choose not to pursue it. Dreams often are abstract visions of thoughts to these people; however, to those who work hard enough, they become reality.
To most, dreams sway like leaves through the wind, but to others, like Aubrey, the leaf finally finds a resting spot. As she stepped onto the stage with her trusted partner, deemed Charlie, by her side, she bowed, keeping her ever unaffected stage face. I knew the real face behind the mask. To me it was easy to see that the look was plastered on to hide the complete joy she had because of her performance with Charlie. Like a wild mustang that cannot be broken, my sister had acquired an untamable desire to become a concert cellist. This dream started out like a small and fragile rosebud; however, for the last four years the rosebud had been blossoming into a beautiful, fragrant rose. Her dream drove her to overcome the barriers of her age; it caused her to begin to live and breathe the music she played. No longer did she struggle through expressing the music she played. No longer did she struggle with the humanly problems with expressing emotion, her trusted cello, Charlie, always played them for her. Her dream, to express herself in a way that everyone who listens can understand, became her passion. Whether or not that dream has become reality, it has changed the way she thinks and acts. Her whole life has been expressed by the music she makes; her dream lives among the stars every time her bow touches the strings. Her cool look on the stage after the music ends is purposeful. The music has spoken for her; it permeates among the audience. The dream she has is affecting hundreds, I know this as I look around to see people‘s emotions streaming down their faces. This dream revealed the dream of one girl, who enables others to see the rainbow up close.
Dreams are different for every single person on the planet. Yet every one has dreams. Without dreams, without these aspirations and epiphanies, nothing would ever change in the world. Life would become stagnant, like a swamp, with the same water floating about forever and ever, rotting everything. Dreams, when they invade the kind of people who actually do something about them, change the world. They make our world a beautiful place. They revolutionize industry; increase productivity; encourage competition; cultivate the arts. Dreams change lives. They create life! They keep hope alive. They keep life alive! Without dreams all color is lost; love is lost. Hatred and bitterness would settle in; despair would reign. Dreams are necessary- whether or not they become reality. Whether or not they change the world, they keep us alive. Dreams, we need them.
The stuff that makes up clouds, the things conjured up underneath a blanket of stars, the passions that live in each of us, dreams. They control who we are, what we become, and how we change the world- regardless of whether they come true! Do not shy away from an unrealistic dream! Embrace it! Acknowledge the fact that someday that dream may come true, or if not, that dream may die, but another even better dream will take its place. A dream may not concede with the dictionary definition, but that is alright. Dreams are meant to transcend the conscious mind. Dream irrationally, that is what they are for.
