come with me

‘Come with me, where dreams are born, and time is never planned. Just think of happy things, and your heart will fly on wings, forever, in Never Never Land.’

– Peter Pan

Come with me. Let’s dance under the open skies and dance to the song our heart sings. Leave the responsibilities and cares behind, if only for a while and come with me…

Because I’m watching life tonight. And I don’t like what I see.

*

I had a chat with the little girl over lunch and she shared that she was best friends with Micah. The Micah who bosses her around with orders to clear her plate, fetch her a drink…

‘Why do you want to be friends with her?’ I asked.

‘She makes me feel important. Everyone in class voted for her to be Class Monitor. They all like her. And if I don’t listen to her, she will start telling stories about me and try to make everyone stay away.’

‘But what about Victoria and the rest, who are the ones who stay by your side even when she gets mean? They didn’t listen to her the last time Micah gossiped about you.’ I was trying to get my point across.

‘I play with them! When Micah’s not around…’ the little girl shrank into her chair.

‘Sweetheart,’ I leaned in close to hold her hand, ‘Aren’t they the real friends you have?’

‘But Micah is an important friend…’ she replied.

*

‘My father once told me to look at my hands,’ the cab driver said. ‘He told me, my hands are imperfect. We only have our brains, we must think clever. So I worked hard. Ask anyone in my hometown, they never saw me. I was working from morning till night… and now I can enjoy.’

‘Were you happy?’ I asked him.

‘I’m happy now. My children are airplane engineers earning lots of money and they take care of us. They stay in Australia so I see them twice a year. But while I was working, it was hard. But no choice. I had no education, no money, only my hands and my brain.’

*

‘We’re both quitting our jobs,’ The Sister said.

She was going to join her friend’s company and her husband was leaving the large, prestigious firm he was in to work for a smaller one.

‘We weren’t happy. He has gastric problems all the time and for me, I’m tired of it all. There’s only so much shit you can take.’

*

The Mother and I were having tea.

‘As a child, were you a dreamer?’ I looked at her.

‘I dreamed all the time,’ The Mother said. ‘But I don’t think they were proper dreams because I just wanted to escape. I thought about all the things I could be, I fantasized about the places I could go. Anywhere far away from where I was – reality.’

*

Are dreams important? Do they cause us to escape from reality or do they give us hope about our tomorrows? I feel foolish sometimes – being the advocate of dreaming that I am – because I look at the massive weight of reality on my loved ones and know that they can’t not face what life brings.

Am I trying to get everyone to fly with me to a vague utopia that doesn’t even exist?

No. But I needed proof. So I did a little search and found out that…

Abraham believed in hope, even though he was barren. And his dreams came to pass.

Joseph had a dream, and though he was mocked by many, his dreams too, came to pass.

The bible also says, ‘There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.’ (Proverbs 12:18) and so we can find rest for our weary souls in God because our hope, our dreams, come from Him (Psalm 62:5).

Hope and dreams. They come from God. And from Him, comes the fulfillment of our desires.

I believe that imagination is stronger than knowledge. That myth is more potent than history. That dreams are more powerful than facts. That hope always triumphs over experience. That laughter is the only cure for grief. And I believe that love is stronger than death.

– Robert Fulgham

I find rest in that tonight. And I shall unashamedly continue to dream.

Hopefully, so will you.