"Dreamers have become an endangered species."
-Jacoby Shaddix
Last night I saw a man on the subway train who looked like he hadn't moved from the seat he sat in for a week. I noticed he stared around the train looking to make eye contact with anyone he could. I also noticed the lengths everyone else took in order to not make eye contact even when looking in his direction. I moved closer to him once the train cleared out a little and I asked him what it was he wanted out of this life....
He looked at me and replied "Nothing". When I questioned his response he went on to inform me that he wants nothing out of life because up until this point, he has lived his life to every ounce of his ability. I then asked him how he did this. He pulled out a wrinkled piece of paper and began creating beautiful origami animals on the spot. He did not say a word, did not ask for anything from me... Before I got up to get off the train he stopped me and pointed to the window where I saw my reflection. I walked off the train and realized that his fulfillment out of life was the expressions given off by strangers after seeing his ability from a mastery of a craft.
The lesson learned here is that no dream of happiness is greater than the other. As long as the ability to dream never leaves. Dreamers, like Warriors, have become endangered in this world. We sometimes fear following our dreams because it is a path less traveled. We sell ourselves short so that we can be safe. We trade a life of happiness for a life of looking back with regret. If there's one thing I learned from this man, it was that he was in this world to change lives. He may never know how deep his impact is, but he doesn't care. Do not do things with the expectation of receiving something in return. In time the dreams we know and love will exceed any expectations we had.
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