“Here comes that dreamer”… I believe in dreams. Dreams give us hope and aspirations. Artists know everything about dreams. It seems like as artists we are constantly living in one. It is common to come across people who say: “You are dreaming if you think you can make it as an artist.” I hear that a lot but my favorite one is: “What else do you do besides art?” Have you heard that before? Have you said that to someone?
People is always impressed when I tell them my story. I’ve been drawing since I was very little. In third grade I could already draw by looking at stuff. In fifth grade I spent the year painting history related murals in the classroom. I was always involved in something ‘artistic’ in school. However, when the time came to apply to college, I applied to study civil engineering. The day I was filling up paperwork for the application my father sat next to me and asked me what was I doing so I explained. His response was:
“Why? You love art. You are going to be miserable if you do anything else.”
He was right. After the first year I was already leaving civil engineering and moving into arts. (I’ll save the story of that transition for a different post.) Needless to say I’m here now with a long journey in front of me still. My dream is not complete yet, but I can say it is getting there.
This journey makes me think of Joseph. The first time I heard the story of Joseph I became fascinated with it. Yes, it is in the Bible (Genesis 37 and on). Joseph had dreams and the gift of interpreting dreams for others. His character also had to be tested because of that. First thing I learned from this story: Be careful who you share your dreams with and how. Joseph made enemies out of his own brothers because of his dreams. Sadly, we are going to make enemies because of our dreams, gifts, and abilities. Rest assured, “the haters” (it even sounds funny when I write it) will one day bow down. That’s not the point or what we are looking for. I am learning to pray for the success of “them” and grace, just like the one I received.
As I mentioned before, Joseph’s character had to be tested. We go through life trying to make sense of the paths we have taken and how it all fits into our dream. We might be living the roller coaster life and on each turn it seems like we are about to touch our dream and we miss it. We take another path, and another, and feels like just isolated experiences. Maybe we are collecting the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle and one day we will make sense of the bigger picture. Hold on to your dream!
I Believe in Dreams
People is always impressed when I tell them my story. I’ve been drawing since I was very little. In third grade I could already draw by looking at stuff. In fifth grade I spent the year painting history related murals in the classroom. I was always involved in something ‘artistic’ in school. However, when the time came to apply to college, I applied to study civil engineering. The day I was filling up paperwork for the application my father sat next to me and asked me what was I doing so I explained. His response was:
“Why? You love art. You are going to be miserable if you do anything else.”
He was right. After the first year I was already leaving civil engineering and moving into arts. (I’ll save the story of that transition for a different post.) Needless to say I’m here now with a long journey in front of me still. My dream is not complete yet, but I can say it is getting there.
This journey makes me think of Joseph. The first time I heard the story of Joseph I became fascinated with it. Yes, it is in the Bible (Genesis 37 and on). Joseph had dreams and the gift of interpreting dreams for others. His character also had to be tested because of that. First thing I learned from this story: Be careful who you share your dreams with and how. Joseph made enemies out of his own brothers because of his dreams. Sadly, we are going to make enemies because of our dreams, gifts, and abilities. Rest assured, “the haters” (it even sounds funny when I write it) will one day bow down. That’s not the point or what we are looking for. I am learning to pray for the success of “them” and grace, just like the one I received.
As I mentioned before, Joseph’s character had to be tested. We go through life trying to make sense of the paths we have taken and how it all fits into our dream. We might be living the roller coaster life and on each turn it seems like we are about to touch our dream and we miss it. We take another path, and another, and feels like just isolated experiences. Maybe we are collecting the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle and one day we will make sense of the bigger picture. Hold on to your dream!
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