Daydream Believer

In the gloom, one must always find a light to strive toward, a beacon of hope in a dark place. For me, it was always books, movies, and music which lifted me out of the doldrums. Each of those inspired something more than I could have expected, a force so strong it has never left my soul. I'm talking about daydreams.

I read about places far away from Chicago's South Side, and about characters leading lives much different from mine, and I wondered and hoped that someday I too would have adventures. Maybe not destroying the One Ring or duping Cardinal Richelieu, but I knew I wanted to see more of the world than what was outside my front door. But, as Frost wrote, "Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back." And having ventured forth, I now find it impossible to be the person I once was.

That's how everyone is supposed to be. Right? Evolution and ascension and acknowledgment that all of the trials and tribulations got us from there to here were worth it. The following of one's daydreams is a worthy quest just as were the adventures of our fictional heroes. Whether it's learning to play the bagpipes, visiting the Tower of London, writing a book, starting a business, or taking a helicopter ride, go for it. Because without chasing daydreams, the world has no color.

I would switch out guitar or piano for bagpipes, just saying.