A conversation outside, on the back deck last night with a friend, ushered in some new thoughts to me. Here we were at 11:30pm, last night catching up from seven months of very limited communication. As we began to talk about the current situations and "quests" that we find ourselves on, we began divulging into some deeper thoughts. We talked of dreams. The very dreams that are inside each and everyone of us. Some are actualized, while others have to be discovered through some inadvertent external stimuli. Dreams that become self-actualized when we speak them aloud, audibly, to otherselves or in the gathering of others.

This conversation sparked some thoughts in me.

We say that we dream. Let me retract that. We say that we desire to do something bigger than who we are. We long to make a difference. To do something that adds value. To be a part of a movement. To quest for an identity and really, a destiny: our own personal destiny.

But something unexpected happens. We wakeup one day and we have surpassed time. In the blink of an eye, days, weeks, months, and even, years, have passed. With the littlest acknowledgement from our concious, we try to remember what it is that we have done. We try, at times, in vain, to justify or criticize our decisions of the latent past. We evaluate this lost time and look forward to our dreams; have either coincided or have they completely missed one another. Have they converged or diverged from the initial hopes and dreams? Was it real or only wishful thinking?

What is it that happens when we speak out our dreams? Is there a sense of urgence in our tone, a sense of authority and power? Maybe even a hint of boldness? Or are these words and phrases just that, words and phrases? Do they carry meaning and purpose or were they a justification for wishful thinking?

Really, the question to ask is, despite the current reality of the situation we find ourselves in, can we move forward from this point?