E-couragment: When Dreams Take Flight
September 2007 “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you’ve imagined.” -- Thoreau
On July 18, 2007 I witnessed a dream take off. At 6:30 a.m. that morning, I watched with mixed emotions as my 16-year-old daughter boarded a flight bound for a six-month exchange student program in Chile. In the weeks to come, I once again found myself in a “role reversal” with one of my daughters. Taylor had become the teacher and I the student.
Taylor’s dream began taking shape years ago. During numerous trips to visit family in New Jersey and New York, she fell in love with the variety of language, food, and culture. She knew one day she would explore this great and diverse world. Taylor worked for years to traverse the many obstacles of her dream. She researched online, filled out paperwork, traveled to meetings, and gave up lots of personal time to work and save money. It was all worth it to her. After Taylor left the country, it was almost five anxiety-filled days before I could connect with her. Once she settled in with her host family, I eagerly dialed their phone number in Arica, Chile. After stumbling through the phrase, “Hola, may I speak with Taylor Schlentz please,” in my best Spanish-Jersey accent, Taylor was summoned to the phone. I couldn’t wait to hear her voice filled with the sounds of excitement and adventure. “Hello Dad,” was all she could muster before bursting into tears. The only thing worse than not being able to hear your child’s voice for five days is hearing their tears when they are 3,000 miles away. “This is so hard!” she stated. Her dream was tougher than she had imagined. The best I could do was cry along with her and assure her that her emotions were appropriate and to be expected. I encouraged her that soon those feelings would give way to those of wonder and thrill.
In an email dated August 24, Taylor wrote, “I really think this is the perfect experience for me. I just keep thinking, when I am walking down the streets here, how lucky I am and how I am so blessed. It’s really given me an amazing perspective and I love it. I love you.” Quite different from our phone conversation in July.
Here’s what I learned from my daughter…
1) Your Dreams Are Meant to Fly: No barrier is insurmountable to the person who has a clear and compelling vision of who they must be or what they must accomplish. It is only a matter of getting on the runway and putting the throttle down. If dreams don’t take off, they die on the tarmac of lost intentions. Author John Eldredge writes, “Without a deep and burning desire of our own, we will be ruled by the desires of others. It’s a high price to pay. Too high.” If you believe strongly enough, your dream will fly!
2) Your Dreams Will Test You: Dan Allender writes, “Dreams can quickly become fantasies if we refuse to risk and bleed for our future.” Expect to pay a price for your dreams. Buckle up and anticipate turbulence. It’s part of the flight pattern. Your journey, along with your destination, will change you forever. 3) Your Dreams Will Bless You: If you stay with it, your dreams will provide some amazing perspectives. If you let them fly, while expecting the occasional challenges and fears, you will eventually marvel at the depth and meaning they will add to your life journey.
I have often said, “The only differences between boys and men are that we are taller and have lost our dreams.” Now I realize I was wrong. A person can’t lose their dreams. We can give them away. We can trade them in for someone else’s dreams. We can pack them in a cardboard box and put them on the porch to be carted away like some worn, donated clothing. The good news is that we can reclaim them. Just grab your “dream e-ticket”, head to the dream counter, and proclaim, “I want my dream seat—preferably next to the window!” Then buckle up. See you in the clouds.