When Dreams Die

I stepped out of my professional career of 20+ years to live out my dreams. I wanted to make a living from my hobbies—music, writing and photography.

First the Music—I have always dreamed of being a musician but as Simon Cowell says, “You have to have some modicum of talent”. Whereas I love the saxophone and can play it a little I knew I would not make a living from it. The next best thing is to find a way to work with music and get paid. My friend and I have been working on a business plan that once all the pieces are in place could turn into a very lucrative music business. However, getting those pieces is turning out to be a challenge and the dream seems to be fading.

Photography—I have loved taking pictures since I was a kid and enjoyed the time I spent in the darkroom in my college media arts class. Now the age of digital photography has me hooked and I am loving my computer darkroom. However, breaking into the world of photography is very competitive and without the adequate equipment it is not feasible to advertise and not be able to deliver. This dream also seems to be fading.

The Writing—from the time I checked out my first book from the library and became the character in that book I knew I wanted to write. With every novel I read from that point on I could see my name on the front cover. This too is a very competitive field and breaking into it is very challenging. Is this dream fading as well?

What would make a person leave a successful career and pursue their dreams—desire. But desire is not enough you need drive and ambition. That too is not enough you need resources and opportunities. Without them dreams could fade and die. What do you do when that happens…

Sometimes it’s hard to keep the dream alive
Life pulls and pushes and can drive you insane
Your decisions become hard to explain
When you sink beneath the covers, hold on, stay focused
The dream didn’t die
It takes faith to keep it alive.