Dreams are Whispers from the Soul

by Marcia Wieder

Bessie had been an amateur photographer for 25 years. Now at 70, she had a very clear dream.

"I want to be a world famous, professional photographer," she said and then emphasized, "The difference between an amateur and a professional is a professional gets paid."

"Fabulous," I exclaimed. "Is anything stopping you?"

She paused for a long time. "I'm sure I need credentials but don't want to go back to school at my age."

I listened between the words and felt what she wasn't saying.

"Bessie, what's really in your way?" I gently asked.

"Everyone is telling me I am too old," she slumped. "They're telling me to be realistic."

Outrageous, I thought. "Nonsense," I said. "What's a step you can take to show that you are more committed to your dream than to their doubt?"

She reflected for a moment and then suddenly her eyes lit up. "I know what to do. I have an application sitting on my desk for a photo contest sponsored by Kodak. Just entering would have me prove to myself that I am serious about this."

She took a stunning photograph of a man playing a sousaphone with golden tones of his reflecting his bright red band uniform. She proudly sent it off to the Kodak competition, now mind you, along with 500,000 other entries.

Bessie won first prize, which included a check for $10,000.00. "I ran out to get business cards printed," she bragged. "After all, now I really am a professional."

Her photograph toured around the world with the Journey into Imagination exhibit.

She got the whole dream.

"Bessie, what did you learn from this? What wisdom would you share?" I asked.

She looked me square in the eyes and said, "It's never too late to make a dream come true."

Until you get to the end of your life and look back on what you did or didn't accomplish how do you know if something is realistic? Most people compromise their dreams down to what they realistically believe they can accomplish before they explore the possibilities of where their dreams might take them.

Not Bessie...and not you!

"The time for action is now. It's never too late to do something."
-Carl Sandburg

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