A Dreamer

By nature, I am a dreamer. The sadness is that I harness my dreams so tightly with my own lack of confidence that I often strangle them. Being a dreamer means that I’m really great at ideas but the practical world is difficult for me. I can teach 100 kids how to write a beautiful persuasive essay and inspire them to go to college, but filling out a purchase order or signing up for insurance brings me to my knees. I can’t handle it. This near inability to function in the real world makes achieving dreams a bit hard.

But I also think being a dreamer is a great asset as a teacher. I dream with my students. I am excited about the possibilities for their lives. It is fun to imagine, to hope, that they will become great people and do great things in the world. I can push them to expand possibilities beyond what they know, to believe they can do hard things, to encourage them to at least try. And I equip them with some tools that will help them get there. Reading and writing, of course. Critical thinking and communication, certainly. But I teach them so much more than that. Work ethic, kindness, compassion, integrity. It is a blessing to get to dream, year after year after year. 

One of the frustrations of being a dreamer is that the dream is never fully realized. It’s always only a dream. I’m constantly wondering, hoping, wishing, working towards. But it keeps me going, keeps pushing me, moving me. Also frustrating is that the much of the fruits of my labor will remain a mystery to me until the other side of eternity. Maybe I don’t feel like I’ve reached my ultimate dream because I can’t see the results of what I do every day.

To be a dreamer requires faith and imagination. I have to see Jael in some profession that will serve people—maybe a pediatrician or counselor. I have to know that Thomas will make our community better, maybe through politics or business leadership. I have to know that Colton is going to improve lives for so many people, probably in the area of agriculture. They will get jobs that will enable them to take care of their families and enjoy their lives. And I will have been a part of making that happen, even in the slightest of ways.