Dream big young man, because God ain’t small.

Quality relationships are valued by many, yet so few of us have them. I wish that were not the case, but knowing that makes me grateful for the ones I have. This quote comes from one of my best friends, a friend of over 12 years.

My father always told me how lucky I am to have a partner (friend) like my best friend, Eric. One day Eric was leaving work when an older woman shouted to him, “Dream big young man, because God ain’t small!” He said the moment felt like a movie scene, one of those riding into the sunset sequences.

Quote #5 | Dream big young man, because God ain’t small.

When I think about this statement, it gives me chills. I’ve always idealized visionaries and progressive thinkers. I imagine those words have crossed the mind or been uttered by those idealists I hold in high regard.

However, you may not. Being conscious of that possibility, I would like to share a quote from James Turrell. “We live within this reality we create, and we’re quite unaware of how we create the reality.”

From adolescence, our reality formulates from our sphere of influence (parents, family, friends, and teachers). Only in adulthood is that ever challenged for most of us. The glass goggles we once viewed life from somehow get removed.

Seeing the world separate from a childlike bliss can be blinding. The daze of an imaginative world gets replaced by harsh realities. Conversations fade from games and joy to bills and politics. Many of us become engulfed in a routine that feels like a fast-forwarding clock. Our place in time becomes lost. Days, weeks, months, and years feel the same because we’re doing what we have to do.

“To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all” — Oscar Wilde.

The challenge we all must face head-on is finding a way to escape the mundane. Pursuing happiness is the task. Allow new ideas to become doorways to new perspectives. When you begin to see your reality as what can be versus what is, you embody an essence of hope.

History has proven time rewards those who think beyond the idea of the possible and run toward the impossible. Creative solutions to our harsh realities may feel like four-leaf clovers, but isn’t the rarity of such a thing, worth the pursuit?

So dream big!

To my nephew,

Everything considered possible may have once been seen as impossible. So strive to redefine standards!