Dreams, we all have them. And, there’s something to be said about dreaming. Whether at night, in a deep sleep or wide awake and staring into blankness, a dream is a dream.

As I sit comfortably with the patio door open and the warm wind rustling these new leaves having bloomed just before Spring, I’m reminded of the dreams that I’ve chased and of those that I still follow.

They remain a part of my being, a dynamic that without I would not be who I am today.

Just a boy, perhaps eight years wise, my dreams were of travel. They remain so to this day. I was obsessed with maps, globes and any literature I could find on new places I read with a voracious appetite.

I memorized capitol cities not only in the states but across the world. I studied the lightly raised mountain ranges with the tips of my fingers along my globe, and wished that one day the blue shaded oceans that separated colorful worlds, customs and cultures would be touched by my hands and feet.

I’d spin the globe and land my finger on a spot, hoping that one day I would visit there, and it become part of my experience.

Since that time, I’ve traveled widely and I’ve traveled often. Many times at the drop of a hat. I’ve lived here and there, east coast, west coast, gulf coast and even in the far north country where some call the banks of the St. Lawrence river.. the fourth coast.

Each and every one of these places, no matter where, have given me something. They’ve fulfilled a continuous dream, they’ve quelled a thirst for never-ending horizons and they’ve taken an eight year old boy and turned him into a man with a passion for life, and given him a desire to seek of new shores.

And now, well over 30 years later, I look upon the face of my son and wonder; what will his dreams be?

What will drive him to pursue them?

Just as with my daughter, I only hope to nurture any love he finds, any interests that sparks his heart, any wish he chooses to chase and any path that begs him to follow.

In time, we become our dreams. And those of us who give our hearts to the stars will always know that without dreams, a star is never truly born and miracles never witnessed.

I set out this morning knowing this would be a good day, and in my dreams one day this moment will speak again. Following the heart is a path that leads us home, in perfect unison with our truest nature.

And our nature must live its truth.

Knowing this, I beg all to speak softly, but always speak true. In doing so, you won’t have to follow your dreams any longer.

Dreams with then always follow you.