-
Christopher
Hampton
The other day I went walking through the streets and I
couldn’t help but notice all of the youth around me. By no means am I old, but
I am referring to those who are not yet in their twenties. As I see them my
mind goes back to the days when I was their age and the mysteries of life were
just unraveling. Nothing was impossible in my mind and other minds alike. Well
those times have gone and the world has had an impact on the things we once
dreamed about.
I want to draw you attention to the poem written by Langston Hughes entitled “A Dream Deferred”.
What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore--
And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over-- like a syrupy sweet Maybe it just sags like a heavy load. Or does it explode?
Now you have to understand the life of Langston Hughes to
understand the purpose behind his writings. He was a major catalyst in the
Harlem renaissance that expanded the horizons of poetry not just to African
Americans but to all races. He grew up
in a time of segregation and hate towards “the other races”. This was a
migration of Negros from the south to the north, and a advancement in the arts
and a realization of the African American condition. The era was a time of
change but that change brought about hard times due to the great depression
towards the end of the Harlem renaissance. One example is that Hughes dreamed
of going to Columbia University to pursue a higher education and he succeeds but
left do to racial discrimination. A dream that was started but soon thereafter
fell apart.
A dream is whatever the dreamer wants it to be. Within a
dream you can be whatever you want, when you want and how you want. There are
no restrictions or doubts. If something is not to your liking then you can
change it in a blink of an eye. But reality and dreams are in many ways exact
opposites. Now some dreams become a reality and they flourish. But what do you
do when they don’t. It is hard to wish for something and work for something for
so long only to see it crumble to nothing. It is evident that dreams often fall
victim to the chatter of the non-believers. Who are the non-believers? Well
they are those people that don’t see the vision and the potential for greatness
in your dreams.
But don’t let that stop you from reaching up. Now I will
say that some dreams are irrational due to their nature and people should be
able to tell when something is right and when something just won’t work. An
example is growing up I wanted to be a legendary martial arts master with
supernatural powers who saved the world. A child’s dream is just that, a
child’s dream. No I’m talking about those dreams that show promise, that show
change. To make a dream come true first of you have to have faith in that
dream. Secondly you have to have the tenacity to work for it. Thirdly you have
to want it!
But when the odds against you prevail you have to have
the courage to stand on your own two feet and say I won’t be defeated and this
won’t stop me. If there is one thing I have learned in life is that your dreams
are just that…yours. Don’t let other people discourage you and tear you down
because they can’t comprehend. Learn to speak victory over dreams and believe
that it will come to past. I charge you to look at your life and ask yourself
are you defined by what others say and think. Or do you walk down a path that
you have forged for yourself? Prepare yourself for the criticism; prepare
yourself for the ups and downs. Prepare yourself and know that there is a
chance that this dream can fall apart but have the faith to say even if it
does, I’ll pick up the pieces and go at it again. I’ll run on until my dream
comes to fruition and nothing can hinder me from my destiny which I am molding
with my own two hands. You are the artist so imagine it and then paint your
portrait.
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