Dream a Little Dream
Dream big, kid!
If such words haven’t been spoken to you, you’ve surely heard them in a movie. Isn’t that always the thing? To dream big, wild, beyond your imagination. We all have dreams – we all have dreams like that. The kind where you’re a world-class painter who moonlights as an astronaut. Oh, and on Saturdays, you sometimes head-up a Broadway musical.
People grow and dreams change. Dreams might become more realistic or more achievable as you become an adult and become more aware of where you’re going or what you want from life or, even, just what you might actually be able to achieve.
Or is that even the point? Are dreams something to even be caught? Or are dreams too big to be clasped against our chests and claimed as our own? Are they not meant to be reached but just motivators, something to get us out of bed in the morning, something to inspire us to try the next thing, the bigger thing, the more challenging thing.
As a kid, I had a lot of dreams. I dreamt of being a famous author. I dreamt of being married and having a big family and a nice house. I dreamt of going to space. I dreamt of being a fashion designer.
Suzey in Venice c. 1997(?) was probably just dreaming about eating a big bowl of gelato. Yeah, enjoy that while you can, kid.
I’m not really a kid anymore. And here’s where we’re at. Famous, I definitely am not, but I am an author. As for the husband and the kids and all that… Well, listen. I’ll get there. But I’m only twenty four and also working on not sending my boyfriend running for the hills in terror. Turns out space is pretty big and scary and although I may have signed up for the mailing list for Richard Branson’s Virgin Intergalactic space tourist programme, I am not a billionaire and likely will never be. And, frankly, as much as I love clothes and I love to shop, I couldn’t draw then and I certainly can’t now.
2014, dreaming of working at TIFF… Flash forward to 2018? Well, huh.
But none of that means I’ve stopped dreaming. Take film. Working in film was a dream that developed as an adult and it’s a dream that I’m lucky enough to now call my job. Not every day is glamorous – in fact, most days are decidedly not – but I love it.
But if that was my one dream, my only dream, what would I do next? In my mid-twenties, I can’t very well sit down and sat “I’ve done it now!”
(And I haven’t, I really haven’t, except that I never specified my dream much beyond “working in film”. Apparently, that can also include making people coffee).
I like the idea of dreams, though. I like how they sound – a little whimsical, a little soft around the edges. This time of the year, everyone likes to talk of goals and resolutions – words that sound harsh and unforgiving. We all know we’ll break our resolutions, that our goals will defeat us.
But what about dreams?
So, I’m not making resolutions this year, not really. I’m pursuing dreams. I’ve always dreamed of being able to tap dance, so today I took my first tap dance lesson. I dream of eating nice, home-cooked food, so I’m making a conscious effort to get back into cooking. I dream of travelling to see beautiful places in this beautiful world so I’ve booked a trip. I dream of those I love being happy so I want to do everything I can to be open and loving and kind to those around me and to bring them joy. I dream of finishing this book I’ve been writing for almost two years so I’m going to sit down and actually write, as often as I can.
It is too easy to lock a dream in your head and never allow it to blossom. Oh, it’s just a dream. Make it more tangible, make it something that you can take steps to achieving.
I’m not the protagonist of a Disney movie, so the chances are that all my dreams will not come true. But I will do what I can to make every day count towards those dreams. To make, if you will, every day just a little more… Dreamy.
