The Wind in Our Dreams

“I don’t believe in coincidence, nor do I believe in chance. However, I do believe in hope, I do believe in faith, and I do believe in miracles. The human spirit is one of the strongest forces that I’ve come to know. When we make up our minds to do something or to have something, and we pursue our dreams with conviction- we find that despite all odds, NOTHING can get in our way. To the person reading this journal, you did not come into its possession by chance, nor did I leave it behind on accident. Just like everyone else, you deserve a shot at your dreams. They are what give us life and purpose, after all…” -Anonymous

Today was just like the last several days were. So were the days before that. It was rainy & gloomy, and no glimpse of the sun could be found in the sky. Seattle, Washington was known for these characteristics. Nobody in Seattle ever seemed to have a problem with this, though. Especially the natives. This didn’t apply to Maliyah. At twenty-eight years old, Maliyah was the most joy-filled person you’d ever meet. Everywhere she went she beamed sunlight (hence the sunny disposition that she was known for). Her smile and her skin radiated a glow that drew one in.

Though Maliyah had grown up in Seattle all of her life, she had never quite gotten used to its weather. On the off chance that the sun did shine in Seattle, Maliyah’s sunny disposition was supercharged by ten! Scientifically, the sun is what gives all of us our energy, as it’s light is full of vitamin d and nutrients. For Maliyah however, it held a far weightier meaning. The sun shining for Maliyah was proof that things could get better. She embraced its warmth and glow as if they’d never be apart. The sun gave her a reason to say thank you.

Maliyah had what she considered a mediocre job at best. She worked at a call center in downtown Seattle; and though she was exceptionally fond of her work when she first began, that energy began to dwindle the longer she worked there. This was probably due to the fact that she spent nearly all of her time sitting in the same place for eight hours a day. This didn’t sit well with her considering she lived an active lifestyle. Maliyah was always on the go, and when she wasn’t, she was always thinking about what she could do next.

Yeah, she didn’t like the work she did, but she really enjoyed the people she worked with! Everyone there was friendly and charismatic. Every holiday the staff and all the employees would show up in high spirits because they knew they were getting fed for lunch (quite literally every holiday). While the rest of the staff were working the supervisors would fire up the grill on the patio, and crank up the music in the cafeteria. Soon after, boisterous laughter could be heard down the hall. You knew it was time to eat when you could hear the loud clanging of the grillware scrape against the grill bars as the smell of well-done burgers began to linger down the hall!

This job seemed secure so it was hard for most people to ask for anything more, especially those that had had tenure there for over twenty years! Maliyah didn’t see how it was possible. How could anyone work at a call center for over twenty years? She had only been there for about sixteen months and was already bored with the place. It was hard to be content when her mind was filled with all the possibilities and wonder that awaited her in the world!

Every day Maliyah had two fifteen-minute breaks to herself to do with whatever she wanted. This was her time to shine! It was when she felt free. When her supervisor told her to break, she’d immediately hop from her seat and sprint toward the cafeteria where she’d hurriedly scarf down her food so she could get outside. Maliyah carried around a small, crumpled piece of paper with her everywhere she went; it’s what she called her dream note. So, when she’d make it outside, she’d go to a stoop that she called her own, take out her dream note, and dream. She read this little dream note every chance she got. From front to back: “I AM SO HAPPY AND GRATEFUL BECAUSE ONE DAY….,” she started. “1. I will be debt free! 2. I will teach others! 3. I will leave a legacy! 4. I will be rich! 5. I will establish communities in my area! 6. I will walk into purpose and destiny!” She gave a victorious fist thrust after each declaration. The list went on and on in this way. From numbers one through twenty Maliyah had a list of things she was determined to see for her life. Anyone that knew Maliyah knew that when she was outside this was what she was doing. Outside was home for her, yes, but it was also where she felt least restricted to visualize how she wanted her life to play out. The things on her dream note were the same things Maliyah saw as she gazed out over the horizon from her stoop during her breaks. Despite the weather, Maliyah would do this every single day. When her fifteen minutes were up, she stuffed her dream note back into her pocket, took one last look out over the usually overcast sky, and slowly made her way back inside.

Maliyah didn’t realize it in the moments that she spent outside dreaming and visualizing, that every time she did, she was calling on the universe to help her make her dreams come true. She was mustering up her spirit! The same words that she had written down and spoke every day were subtly becoming a part of her. She was stirring up belief in herself and belief in miracles. Unbeknownst to Maliyah, this subtle faith that she was creating would be the very reason the rest of her life would be different when she stepped outside for her next break.

The next three hours of her day moved along like they did for the person who is always watching the time. Every phone call she took was like torture as all Maliyah wanted to do was be outside. It didn’t matter to her that it was gloomy outside. She just couldn’t seem to escape the insatiable longing for freedom that constantly weighed on her heart. This longing seemed to grow substantially since she had returned from her first break. Everything in her was telling her that this outside was where she needed to be!

Maliyah couldn’t quite put her finger on what was pulling on her, but she knew something was different. Though she desperately wanted to get away from her desk, she knew that she would have to buckle down to get through the next two hours she had left before her next break. So that’s exactly what she did. She took one phone call after another in a long list of clients that needed to be serviced. She was able to do so without complaining or looking up for the time, and this made that next, last hour fly by.

Soon enough it was time for her last break of the day! Maliyah was filled with excitement! You know the excitement your dog feels when you get home after a long day? So excited in fact, that every once in a while, he pees himself? Or when you, yourself have been expecting something for such a long time, and the moment is finally here, but you waited so long and can’t contain it and you find yourself having to pee? That was Maliyah. She had finally finished her last call! Calmly she got up from her seat, hung up her headset, and slowly made her way to do door. As soon as she broke the door threshold, she took off down the hallway to first relieve herself. Once she finished, she wasted no time sprinting outside.

What Maliyah didn’t realize while she was still working was that after she convinced herself to push through her work, the sun had sneakily made its way through the cloudy curtains blocking its shine. Maliyah realized this as she reached the front of the building. Her sprint got a little faster and her smile got a little brighter. She stretched her arms wide as she ran to the meeting grounds that was her stoop. And when she got there she didn’t waste and ounce of time taking out here dream note. Right as she began to read, she looked up to meet the sun over the horizon and whispered, “Thank you.”

Just as these words left her lips a strong gust of wind came around and thrust Maliyah’s dream note from her grasp. Frantically she watched as her dreams were tossed by the wind. In an effort to catch them before they were lost, she took off in the direction that they were carried. Though she ran as hard as she could, she couldn’t keep up with the speed at which the wind was carrying her dream note. As she realized this, tears began to roll down her cheeks in quiet desperation. Just as she was about to give up chasing her dreams, she saw in the distance that the wind had finally released them. Maliyah ran quickly to where she saw her dream note land and as she got closer, she paused. This time she was sobbing.

Maliyah approached a far off rose bush to find that the wind had not only ran off with her dreams, but that in landing in that rose bush her dream note was completely torn to shreds. Maliyah was devasted. She had written that dream note well over a year ago, and even carried it with her every single place she went. Now it was gone. Weeping quietly, she dropped to the ground to pick up what pieces were left. In doing so, she stumbled upon what would prove to be the most wonderous of blessings she had ever encountered!

As she picked up the last piece of her dream note she noticed a small, black journal hiding under the rosebush. “I wonder who would have left their journal sitting outside like this,” she thought. Then she paused. “Wait, who else comes anywhere near these stoops besides me!” It was strange. Maliyah figured that if this journal was hiding under the rosebush that no one would be coming to look for it any time soon; so, she opened it and began to read.

“I don’t believe in coincidence, nor do I believe in chance. However, I do believe in hope, I do believe in faith, and I do believe in miracles. The human spirit is one of the strongest forces that I’ve come to know. When we make up our minds to do something or to have something, and we pursue our dreams with conviction- we find that despite all odds, NOTHING can get in our way. To the person reading this journal, you did not come into its possession by chance, nor did I leave it behind on accident. Just like everyone else, you deserve a shot at your dreams.

They are what give us life and purpose, after all. If you are reading this it is because you are supposed to be. If you turn to the very last page of this little Moleskin journal you will find a pocket attached to the back. In that pocket is a check for $20,000, signed and ready for deposit. Use it. Write in these pages. Dream new dreams and fulfill the old ones. Stay focused and remember: It’s okay to stop and embrace the sun light.”- Anonymous