It’s time to tend our dreams.
Everything around us is swirling with “the end of things long held” and “the unknowns of the future.”
This week, you’ve probably had at least one conversation with a friend or coworker about the end of a grant, a contract, a project, a relationship, and perhaps even the loss of safety or institutions dedicated to the common good. And many moments of wondering what comes next – often difficult questions about what happens with a gutted democracy, burning forests, and AI algorithms.
And you want to talk about dreams now, Annie?
Geez, you have to be kidding me…
After that list, you may feel like going and taking a nap or lying on the kitchen floor.
(Whoa, how many references will I make to lying on the kitchen floor this year? It’s that kind of year, huh!)
Yes, it is time to revisit your dreams.
This is actually the most necessary time to revisit your dreams. Because dreams are how we remember what we’re fighting for.
We need people like you dreaming about what they want in their own lives, for their neighbors, for children on other continents.
It may even seem irresponsible and privileged to spend time dreaming when we see so much destruction.
But they want you to stop dreaming.
You can dream about immediate desires – nothing wrong with wanting jeans that make your booty look great – but I’m talking about a different kind of dream. The dreams that connect to our values, our desires, and to positive communal change.
If you stop dreaming, the greedy win.
We need to see what we want for ourselves in the future and the possibilities of goodness and living into the fullness of our individual and collective humanity.
- When you’re in your 80s, what do you want to look back on and be grateful you did?
- What do you want to move towards and move away from by January 2026?
- What do you want to feel next March?
- What do you wish for your neighbor’s children?
- What world do you want to help build, even if you only lay one brick?
- What do you wish for the 80-year-old, 40-year-old, and 5-year-old who live across the world from you?
Dreaming in hard times isn’t naive; it’s necessary. But it takes practice.
In the next blog post, I’ll share a few of my own dreams for the future and unexpected dreams I had as a child that have come true. Plus, more real-time practices to bring forth your ability to dream in the hardest of times.
(Want to get started now? Check out a few ideas down in Beacons.)
🏮 BEACONS
- Take a moment to reflect on 1 or 2 simple dreams you have for yourself and for another person.
- Use the above questions as prompts if you like, and take 10 minutes to write them down.
- Try saying to yourself: “This is a worthy dream” or “This dream matters.”
- Find one way you’re already taking action toward one of your dreams, and/or look for an example of someone or a group already working toward your dream.
🌊 TIDE TURNERS
More resources & support
“Hope lies in dreams, in imagination, and in the courage of those who dare to make dreams into reality.” – Octavia Butler
“When I was a little girl, I used to dream as a man, because I wanted to do things that women didn’t do back then such as traveling to Africa, living with wild animals and writing books.” – Dr. Jane Goodall
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
– Margaret Mead
Dreams and deliverables: Holding Onto Vision in the Work of Community – David Curtiss
An article about working with your immediate dream and vision and the importance of person by person changes vs the push of the “impact economy”.