Inspirational Quotes
The problems of the world cannot possibly be solved by skeptics or cynics whose horizons are limited by the obvious realities. We need men who can dream of things that never were.
John F. Kennedy
Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.
Lao Tzu
A Father’s Guide to Wisdom
Our ancestors knew the power that dreams have on the course of our soul’s development. In days long past, humanity turned to elements of the imaginal. They prayed to beings higher than the material factors nowadays idealized. They created avenues of peace within, so they could one day realize those inner visions in the outer world. But where did this capacity to dream go? Where did the civility that humanity once showed towards a unified vision diverge? As John F. Kennedy said, it is effortless to let the horizon of obvious realities create the skepticism that cynics drastically hold dear. But does it mean we need to listen?
The nature of psychological development is three-fold in one direction. We carry with us a past. It is from this past that the personae emerge, those elements we share with the world to create meaning and direction for our life. How can we make sense of this? Right now, you are possibly engaged in pleasurable reading, or maybe studying aspects of depth psychology. Are you enacting a student, a philosopher, or just having a little fun? The persona is the hat that you adapt when engaging in any activity.
The personae are individualized constructs that build the ego. The past dictates these concepts, only in as much as it can lead you to the present moment. This continuum leads you to develop forward-thinking so that you may pursue the future dreams you most desire. But sometimes we get lost along the way.
The segment entitled A Father’s Guide to Wisdom is not a play on words. Although there is much wisdom to share, it merely comes from the heart and constitutes values I wish my sons to have as they grow up. I am not wise by any means. Instead, I am a philosopher, a psychotherapist, and a father that has two beautiful children, and I wish to pass on a value-based education for them to grow within a world that has values, morality, and a compass to gauge the direction they are going. I write these columns for the next generation, but also have a profound respect for the influence we as parents have on giving our children the ecological values that will be needed to fight the skepticism and cynicism so commonly seen in today’s world.
What we need is the ability to dream and a little direction. The largest projects on Earth began by merely starting them. If we start when things are easy, when the going gets tough, we are already ahead of the game. Great things happen when we are out in front and not playing catch up. There is a lot of wisdom here in Kennedy’s philosophy to dream about things that never were and Lao Tzu’s quintessential plea to take the first step.
Namaste. May prayers and blessings find you along your journey to believe, achieve, and advance confidently in the direction of your dreams.
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2 responses to “In Requiem of a Dream”
While my own children are grown with families of their own, Kennedy’s words ring loud with truth in these challenging times. We should never fear to dream.
Beautifully said friend. Dreams form the beginning of anything great that was ever attempted.