It starts as something small, insignificant. It billows and sways on the breeze, tumbling towards its destination. Its touch smolders and burns, but it will not stay in one place for very long. It has a place where it belongs, somewhere out there in that great wide world, a place where it can be free. When it finally lands, when it finally finds a home and comes alive, is its true form is revealed. A dream is born with a body of fire and great wings of flame.
Each of us is born a dreamer. Any child can tell you what they dream of, be it more time for recess or bigger scoops of ice cream. As we grow and mature our dreams grow larger. When I was a child, I wanted to touch the stars and become an astronaut, other kids dream of becoming president or living in a house that’s really just a big bounce house. Our dreams transform as we grow up. Like an ember on the wind, they dance and sway on the breeze, looking for a special place where they can burn the brightest.
That special place is what we are passionate about. The things that inspire action, the ideas that motivate us to go above and beyond ourselves. What we wake up thinking about and go to bed dreaming about are the things we are passionate about. The ideas that resonate uniquely within our core, this is our passion. Our passions are the things we must take action on, the moments we cannot sit idly by and watch. Our passions drive us forward, seeking, reaching, stretching, for the ideal, for the dream that is born from them. Carried along by the fire of our passion, our dreams take us to places and ideas we had never even considered before. Along the way we learn and grow and find new things to be passionate about. It seems to be built into each of us, wired into the core parts of our being, yet we often find it so terribly inconvenient.
Something happens as we continue to grow older. Reality sets in. We lose sight of the things that once excited us. We decide that we can sit idly by and watch. We set aside the parts of us that once brought us joy, the things that once made us unique and wonderful. We have homework to get done, bills to pay, expectations and appearances to maintain, and our inconvenient dreams get put in a corner. They are ignored and forgotten. Slowly the fire of our passions dim, and the monotony of life takes over. We lose the individuality of our dreams and we become worker drones.
A dream is born with a body of fire and great wings of flame.
Our dreams are hard to kill though. Our passions are still there, waiting. Underneath the layers of dust, an ember still burns. It just needs a little attention; a little air and a little fuel and it can flare back up to life again. Our dreams can be reclaimed, we just need to be unafraid to give it a try.
I have had the great fortune to be surrounded by people who are passionate about the world around them. My friends care deeply about a wide range of topics from poetry to cooking. They care about the homeless and bring water and clothes to those in need. Those who are passionate about theology have devoted their time and thoughts to deep study. Those devoted to the outdoors spend their daylight on hikes and adventures. We all have something we are passionate about, be it cooking, or standing up against cruelty to animals. I am passionate about writing, the rights of trans people and inspiring others to get up and achieve their own dreams, and I know that you can reclaim your own.
Our dreams don’t just flare up from out of nowhere. They come from that place deep inside of us that is still a child. That place inside that is the core of who we are. When someone is passionate about something you can see it in their eyes. They brim with excitement and shine with thoughts of what could be. There is a goal they are pursuing, a dream they are chasing. A childness that has joyfully been recaptured. You can reclaim what you once set aside. You can reach out and touch the stars.