Saturday, July 25, 2015

Dreams, First and Last



Dreams, First and Last
©2015 Susan Noyes Anderson

Martin Luther King
had quite a dream,
and so did I.
Sadly, it peaked,
then sprang a leak
and failed to satisfy.

It looked so rosy,
felt so cozy,
when the thing was new.
But in the end
(let's not pretend)
the shiny bits fell through.

I don't like grieving
when believing
can't get something done.
When wishes fail
and hopes derail,
my face turns toward the sun.

But rain will fall
in spite of all;
blue skies still turn to gray.
My dream went wrong,
though I held strong
until it slipped away.

The line runs thin
from "hanging in" 
to empty hands and loss.
It's like a death;
you lose your breath
and marvel at the cost.

Two ways to go:
above, below.
Sink down or choose to rise.
My brand new dream
has open seams
and room for compromise.

This one looks bright,
but held less tightly,
it finds room to breathe.
As wisdom frees,
perfection flees
and once more, I believe.

Though first dreams go,
last(ing) dreams know
that life is not ideal.
Today I find
the world more kind…
my hope less blind, more real.


Some of you may wonder how this poem landed on my mental doorstep. It refers to what my sister and I like to call "the death of the dream," that critical moment when the weight of life experience and its accompanying adversity teach you that living on this earth is not exactly what you thought it would be when you were a small child dreaming of a perfect world. It comes as a real shock to the system, or at least it shocked my optimistic young soul when it happened my way. The odd thing is that it seems to come around again every so often, as if to strip off another layer of my naiveté and expose in all its glory the difficult, soul-stretching challenge life really is. As the admitted owner of a tendency to sport some rose-colored glasses, this is a good exercise for me. Having said that, it is not always a pleasurable one.

Recently, I've walked through another enlightening round of dream dampening, and this poem was my way of making peace with it. I'd be interested to know if any of it resonated with you.

=)

11 comments:

Grandma Honey said...

Yes! I can relate to this. I think most of us can. But now I am worried about you. You have been very quiet lately so perhaps this is why. I've missed you. I hope you are okay.

Gail said...

Granny used to say, Dreams are made to change. I discovered that early and repeatedly but there's always the knowledge that the sun rises again and the skies turn to blue eventually.

Once again, dear Sue, you have tapped my heart and drained the words I could find to say this.

Beautiful.

Stacy said...

I think this hits all of us from time to time. When one door shuts...

yaya said...

This has hit a cord with me. There are times when I had to wonder how the dreams slipped into reality...the head shaking, deep breath moments...the teaching moment. Doesn't make me stop dreaming, just makes me have a plan B. Hopefully all is well with you.

LeAnn said...

Oh my dear friend this one is for me too. It diffidently gave me food for thought along with opened up my sight to my on struggles. Life does throw those curve balls. This hit me right in the middle of my own learning moments. Thanks, this helped my perspective. It is true that these moment come and go and hopefully we come out of these moment stronger and wiser for them.
Love it! Blessings and hugs for you dear friend.
When you have a moment give me an update on your Mom.

carol l mckenna said...

Delightful poem ~ love the rhythm and concept is very contemplative ~

Happy Weekend to you,
artmusedog and carol

Jenny said...

Sue! I love this different cadence!

Really, really neat.

What a great rhythm and resounding word crafting.

Yes.

It resounds with me.

Really perfect.

karen said...

I think we ALL go through this from time to time. It's not pleasant, although it does promote spiritual growth if we can manage to keep bitterness at bay. As I get older, this gets easier to do. I am getting better at owning mistakes, and adjusting my sights. That said... it's still not fun when your dream doesn't match reality. I have to remember a goal that my dad had years ago that was soundly shattered. I remember his disappointment even all these years later. What he ended up doing instead, however, ended up being a blessing to all of us as well as to him. His first goal would not have accomplished the same end, I don't think. It's taught me to put more faith in HF who sees the entire master plan.

Karen Sue said...

This was good...especially for today. I have to often remind myself that I am in a place at a time, for a reason. Only God really knows sometimes. I am not a go-getter on some things, but I remember thinking at a certain age, DANG! I'm never going to be HOT. Just sort of plain. But I think I'm good at what I do, on most given days, and I try to be kind...sometimes you just have to roll with it, as the sand slips through the hourglass and you can't do anything else...

Thanks for putting it to words...

Judie said...

Sue, my rose-colored glasses got stepped on a while back, and I cried. Now I just try to get through the day without thinking that something REALLY BAD is happening in our country right now, and it's making us the laughing stock of the entire world.

Momza said...

I appreciate your eloquence of words and thoughts, Sue. I have recently had an experience that I am still seeking further enlightenment to process it all. In my efforts, I have decided that it is in my best interest to step back and let life open up to me where it will and trust the process when I am uncertain.