179th Edition
Dreams
How important are dreams? I don’t mean the ones we occasionally have at night; I mean a conscious dream to be something special, or to accomplish something extraordinary. It’s an aspiration not an expectation. And there is a big difference between the two.
At the end of one of my favorite sports movies, “Miracle,” Coach Herb Brooks (played by Kurt Russell) explained his disappointment in the decision to allow “Dream Teams” to compete in the Olympics. In his words, “I always found that term ironic because now that we have Dream Teams, we seldom ever get to dream.”
What was his point? The players on the Dream Team weren’t competing to fulfill a dream as much as they were an expectation. Most of them, perhaps all of them, had already accomplished their dream. They had already climbed to the highest level in their chosen profession.
Every young person needs to have at least one dream. How many young kids today have a dream? Is life too challenging or are there too many distractions preventing dreams from being born and nurtured into a lifelong commitment? In some respects, I’m wondering whether we have become a society that does more complaining and blaming, than we do dreaming and aspiring. What do you think?
It might seem obvious to say that nothing extraordinary was ever accomplished without someone having a crazy big dream. It brings to mind inventors and innovators like Thomas Edison and Steve Jobs. But much more often, I suspect, audacious dreams are not fulfilled, and while that disappointment can be heartbreaking, it can also lead to an amazing connection between individuals. One of my favorite scenes in the NCAA basketball Final Four occurred in 1982 during the Georgetown loss to North Carolina, when a Georgetown player made an errant pass that sealed their defeat. As the buzzer sounded, Georgetown’s coach, John Thompson, all 6’ 10” of him, immediately wrapped his enormous arms around his player, showing love and compassion, instead of anger and disappointment. It was a tender moment, that brought tears to many eyes.
Giving every ounce of energy over an extended period in total pursuit of a dream, yet ultimately falling short, can also produce profound, deeply personal revelations. When legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden was asked what he missed most about the game after he retired, he said the practices. Why? Because it is at the practices where all the hard work, sacrifice, and sustained effort occur without immediate reward. It’s where commitment and perseverance are forged. These invaluable character traits are developed and honed only when there is a certain level of commitment to accomplishing a dream, whether that dream is achieved or not. That is the reward for having the guts to go for it.
I fear there are too many naysayers today. Too many people drowning in negativity who are obsessed with finding someone to blame for whatever problem they or anyone else faces. I dare say the rise of socialism is a direct result of this attitude. For those who have been convinced that dreams are no longer achievable, or for those who, through no fault of their own, no longer have the courage to dream, ceding control to an all-powerful state seems reasonable. If the age of American greatness and world leadership is ending, I fear this will be at the root of our decline.
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Michael Kayes
*These views are my personal opinions and are not the viewpoints of any company or organization.