All great journeys start witha dream
_Mr.RaO_ 2011/03/13 12:07
_Mr.RaO_ 2011/03/13 12:07
We all have dreams. Usually while
we ’re asleep. Such dreams could
be more hurtful than helpful. For
example, imagine dreaming
you ’re eating shredded wheat,
only to wake up and find half the
mattress gone! Well, I ’m not
talking about that type of
dream. Rather, I ’m thinking
about one’s vision, aspiration, or
fervent hope for the future. Our
dream is the song of our soul.
Life without one is reduced to a
hollow existence. But life with a
dream is filled with meaning and
purpose.
we ’re asleep. Such dreams could
be more hurtful than helpful. For
example, imagine dreaming
you ’re eating shredded wheat,
only to wake up and find half the
mattress gone! Well, I ’m not
talking about that type of
dream. Rather, I ’m thinking
about one’s vision, aspiration, or
fervent hope for the future. Our
dream is the song of our soul.
Life without one is reduced to a
hollow existence. But life with a
dream is filled with meaning and
purpose.
_Mr.RaO_ 2011/03/13 12:07
Besides being the drummer and
chief lyricist for the rock band
"Rush," Neil Peart is also an
author and philosopher. Look at
how beautifully he expresses
the relationship between life and
a dream: "Life is just a candle
and a dream must give it flame."
Richard M. DeVos, the founder of
Amway Corp., also writes about
the flame of hope: "No life is
more tragic than that of the
individual who nurses a dream,
an ambition, always wishing and
hoping, but never giving it a
chance to happen. He nurses the
flickering dream, but never lets
it break out into flame."
Besides being the drummer and
chief lyricist for the rock band
"Rush," Neil Peart is also an
author and philosopher. Look at
how beautifully he expresses
the relationship between life and
a dream: "Life is just a candle
and a dream must give it flame."
Richard M. DeVos, the founder of
Amway Corp., also writes about
the flame of hope: "No life is
more tragic than that of the
individual who nurses a dream,
an ambition, always wishing and
hoping, but never giving it a
chance to happen. He nurses the
flickering dream, but never lets
it break out into flame."
_Mr.RaO_ 2011/03/13 12:09
Back-flipping Ozzie (Osborne Earl)
Smith, was known for his
amazing athletic ability and for
his record shattering
performance in baseball. He
used his dream to lift him out of
the ghetto, overcome
stuttering, graduate college,
and become baseball ’s greatest
fielding shortstop. He was known
as the "Wizard" and often
compared himself to the
characters in "The Wizard of
Oz." Like the Scarecrow he
wanted a mind that would
nurture a dream; like the Tin
Man he wanted a heart that
would cling to belief (in himself),
like the Lion, he wanted the
courage to persevere, and like
Dorothy, he wanted to go
beyond the rainbow. At his
induction to baseball ’s Hall of
Fame, he said, "All great
journeys start with a dream."
Neil Peart, Richard M. DeVos, and
Ozzie Smith recognized that life
is a journey. To get from where
they were to where they
wanted to be, they followed
their dream. What distinguishes
them from those who stand on
the sidelines is their
understanding that the only
limitations we face are those of
our own creation, or those we
allow others to place in our mind.
Once we follow our dream, our
life changes; we are
transformed. For as baseball
pitcher Satchel Paige (1906 ~
1982) said, "Ain't no man can
avoid being average, but there
ain't no man got to be common."
No, we don ’t have to be
common, we can change all that
by following our dream.
Most of us have a dream,
aspiration, or heart ’s desire. But
the trouble is most of us have
the on/off switch of our dream
set to OFF. Whenever we say, "I
can ’t," we set the switch to OFF.
Whenever we believe we can, we
set the switch to ON. Simple,
isn ’t it? Just because I believe I
can do something doesn’t mean
there won’t be any problems.
But once I believe I can do it, I will
seek solutions for every
problem I stumble on. And since
it is a law of life that we find
what we look for, if I look for
solutions, I will find them.
Any worthy dream is a dream
worthy of accomplishing. Once I
realize I can do it, the next step
is to make a commitment. As
soon as we make a
commitment, great power is
released. What seemingly were
insurmountable hurdles are now
reduced to obstacles of
laughable insignificance. But we
won ’t reach this stage until we
decide to stop talking and start
acting. Unless we commit
ourselves, self-doubt will
ferment and block our way.
Our dreams don ’t have to be
grand to be great. We don’t
have to become the world’s
greatest pianist, an Olympic
medal winner, or an
internationally acclaimed
superstar. An aunt of mine sold
gloves in a department store
for most of her life. Her dream
was to be the friendliest and
most helpful salesperson
around. Year after year, the
same customers would return
and deliberately seek her out.
She brightened everyone ’s day
and touched the lives of
thousands. Was her dream any
less significant than that of a
prominent person? Of course
not. We all have the power to
follow a dream that will make a
difference to us and those we
meet. As writer, lyricist Joe
Darion (1911 ~ 2001) wrote in
"The Impossible
Dream" (featured in "Man of La
Mancha"
:
"And I know if I'll only be true, to
this glorious quest,
That my heart will lie peaceful
and calm,
when I'm laid to my rest ...
And the world will be better for
this:
That one man, scorned and
covered with scars,
Still strove, with his last ounce
of courage,
To reach ... the unreachable
star ..."
What do we say to those who
are in impossible
circumstances, locked behind
prison bars? They may be
stripped of their dignity and
freedom, but they are not
stripped of power. They can still
dream. Yes, they have made
mistakes, but starting from
today, they can make the world
a better place by making
themselves better people. It is
not an impossible dream, and it
is a great dream, one worthy of
following.
Before our dreams can come
true, don ’t we have to dream?
Isn’t there a good reason for
dreaming? After all, how can we
travel any further than our
dream? How can we become any
greater than our dream? Author
of "As a Man Thinketh," James
Allen (1864 ~ 1912) expressed
the same idea, "Dream lofty
dreams, and as you dream, so
shall you become. Your vision is
the promise of what you shall
one day be; your ideal is the
prophecy of what you shall at
last unveil."
Another law of life is we are never given a dream unless we have the power to realize it. But that doesn ’t mean we don’t have to work at it. So, although we want to dream, we don ’t want to oversleep. When we dream during our sleep, our mind both creates and experiences the dream. Similarly, when awake, we create our dream, and if we follow it, we will experience it. In other words, if we create and follow our dream, it will create us. No dreamer is too small; no dream is too big, so hold on to your dream. Poet Langston Hughes (1902 ~ 1967) tells why, "Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly." Even the cartoon character Jiminy Cricket has some good advice to offer, "When your heart is in your dream, no request is too extreme." So, what are you waiting for? Follow your dream!
Back-flipping Ozzie (Osborne Earl)
Smith, was known for his
amazing athletic ability and for
his record shattering
performance in baseball. He
used his dream to lift him out of
the ghetto, overcome
stuttering, graduate college,
and become baseball ’s greatest
fielding shortstop. He was known
as the "Wizard" and often
compared himself to the
characters in "The Wizard of
Oz." Like the Scarecrow he
wanted a mind that would
nurture a dream; like the Tin
Man he wanted a heart that
would cling to belief (in himself),
like the Lion, he wanted the
courage to persevere, and like
Dorothy, he wanted to go
beyond the rainbow. At his
induction to baseball ’s Hall of
Fame, he said, "All great
journeys start with a dream."
Neil Peart, Richard M. DeVos, and
Ozzie Smith recognized that life
is a journey. To get from where
they were to where they
wanted to be, they followed
their dream. What distinguishes
them from those who stand on
the sidelines is their
understanding that the only
limitations we face are those of
our own creation, or those we
allow others to place in our mind.
Once we follow our dream, our
life changes; we are
transformed. For as baseball
pitcher Satchel Paige (1906 ~
1982) said, "Ain't no man can
avoid being average, but there
ain't no man got to be common."
No, we don ’t have to be
common, we can change all that
by following our dream.
Most of us have a dream,
aspiration, or heart ’s desire. But
the trouble is most of us have
the on/off switch of our dream
set to OFF. Whenever we say, "I
can ’t," we set the switch to OFF.
Whenever we believe we can, we
set the switch to ON. Simple,
isn ’t it? Just because I believe I
can do something doesn’t mean
there won’t be any problems.
But once I believe I can do it, I will
seek solutions for every
problem I stumble on. And since
it is a law of life that we find
what we look for, if I look for
solutions, I will find them.
Any worthy dream is a dream
worthy of accomplishing. Once I
realize I can do it, the next step
is to make a commitment. As
soon as we make a
commitment, great power is
released. What seemingly were
insurmountable hurdles are now
reduced to obstacles of
laughable insignificance. But we
won ’t reach this stage until we
decide to stop talking and start
acting. Unless we commit
ourselves, self-doubt will
ferment and block our way.
Our dreams don ’t have to be
grand to be great. We don’t
have to become the world’s
greatest pianist, an Olympic
medal winner, or an
internationally acclaimed
superstar. An aunt of mine sold
gloves in a department store
for most of her life. Her dream
was to be the friendliest and
most helpful salesperson
around. Year after year, the
same customers would return
and deliberately seek her out.
She brightened everyone ’s day
and touched the lives of
thousands. Was her dream any
less significant than that of a
prominent person? Of course
not. We all have the power to
follow a dream that will make a
difference to us and those we
meet. As writer, lyricist Joe
Darion (1911 ~ 2001) wrote in
"The Impossible
Dream" (featured in "Man of La
Mancha"
:
"And I know if I'll only be true, to
this glorious quest,
That my heart will lie peaceful
and calm,
when I'm laid to my rest ...
And the world will be better for
this:
That one man, scorned and
covered with scars,
Still strove, with his last ounce
of courage,
To reach ... the unreachable
star ..."
What do we say to those who
are in impossible
circumstances, locked behind
prison bars? They may be
stripped of their dignity and
freedom, but they are not
stripped of power. They can still
dream. Yes, they have made
mistakes, but starting from
today, they can make the world
a better place by making
themselves better people. It is
not an impossible dream, and it
is a great dream, one worthy of
following.
Before our dreams can come
true, don ’t we have to dream?
Isn’t there a good reason for
dreaming? After all, how can we
travel any further than our
dream? How can we become any
greater than our dream? Author
of "As a Man Thinketh," James
Allen (1864 ~ 1912) expressed
the same idea, "Dream lofty
dreams, and as you dream, so
shall you become. Your vision is
the promise of what you shall
one day be; your ideal is the
prophecy of what you shall at
last unveil."
Another law of life is we are never given a dream unless we have the power to realize it. But that doesn ’t mean we don’t have to work at it. So, although we want to dream, we don ’t want to oversleep. When we dream during our sleep, our mind both creates and experiences the dream. Similarly, when awake, we create our dream, and if we follow it, we will experience it. In other words, if we create and follow our dream, it will create us. No dreamer is too small; no dream is too big, so hold on to your dream. Poet Langston Hughes (1902 ~ 1967) tells why, "Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly." Even the cartoon character Jiminy Cricket has some good advice to offer, "When your heart is in your dream, no request is too extreme." So, what are you waiting for? Follow your dream!
good good man
Great topic
#34 Myth&Mystery
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