Dream A Little Dream: The True Nature of Manifestation.

 

Our imaginations are a rich and gorgeous landscape with which we dream. And our dreams are often a sweet and closely held treasure. They start as seeds, which we keep close, bundled and swaddled dearly in our hearts. Every so often we gently take them out, unpack them and croon over them. Coax them. We carefully nurture them and watch them unfurl.

 

We know some dreams are nothing more than beautiful whimsies – mere fantasies that could never come true. Those types of dreams have an important part to play because they are enjoyable. They are delightful distractions. They are a rich compost upon which other more significant dreams can grow. Some dreams are fickle, insubstantial things. They appear to grow quickly and yet they soon wither to nothing, becoming lacklustre. They grow sickly and soon die because their roots are too shallow. Yet other dreams are substantial and steady. They grow healthy and strong, eventually blooming into glorious fruition.

 

And in order to actualize our dreams we must learn to discern which are which. We must discern those we should pour our energy into from those we should allow to wither away. We must learn which are the dreams that enrich us and which of them deplete us. And then we must learn how to truly manifest them – plucking them from the heady heights of potentiality and forging them into a palpable reality. Root them in tangibility. We must learn which dreams to believe in and feed but also which we must let go with good grace.

 

Because there is an exquisite nature to our dreams before they reach ripeness, isn’t there? When they are still embryonic. For when they are not yet manifested, they are brimming with potential. Latent with raw, unrealised power. At that stage our dreams are shapeless forms that we can have some level of control over. We can imagine exactly how they will incarnate and what relationship we will have with them. How it will be when at last the dream is actualized – what that will look like. Sound like. Feel like. Those dreams are utter perfection that cannot be tarnished. Cannot be tainted.

 

We like that, don’t we? To imagine exactly what our dreams will create in our lives. How magnificent and enriched our lives would be if… How successful and rewarding our lives will be when…

 

But dreams can become an addiction. We can spend our lives in an inner world, surrounded by countless unrealised dreams. Flawless dreams. Perfect because they are unspoiled by the grittiness of reality. They can become a secret obsession – we can devote too much of our time in delicious contemplation of how something could be, how it should be – idling away the hours building up the turrets of our ‘castles in the air’ and furnishing their rich and sumptuous rooms. The ultimate escapism can be found in such castles for they cannot be ruined or marred by any other person – they are ours and ours alone. We rule them and we control them.

 

 

Yet here lies the danger because their unrealised and fragile perfection can start to corrode us. They can erode away our enjoyment of reality – longing causing us to become constantly dissatisfied. Or they can be so perfect and so unblemished that we dare not do anything concrete to manifest them for fear they may crumble – causing us to be impotent in the present  moment. Or worse still for fear that they become a reality that we can no longer govern and command. Once shaped into actuality they may become unwieldy – no longer something we can use as escape. So that which was once a castle may become a prison. Something we dare not escape from.

 

We must be careful that our dreams do not confine control and us. Yes we must always dare to dream and yet always remember to not make dreams our master.

 

Dreams are necessary and they are powerful! But their true power lies in their raw potential to incarnate. Without the true potential to become real they are nothing more than wisps of delightful fancy. We may be the dreamers of the dreams but what good is a dearly held dream without the ability to create something real with it? Without hard-graft and determination. Without concrete plans and sacrifice. What use are they unless we are willing to pour into them our energy, our dedication, our hard-work and persistence? Dreams are not created merely by thought but by blood, sweat and countless tears.

 

And they are not for us to control. To restrict and restrain. Once we have made the decision to pour our energy into manifestation, our dreams no longer belong to us. They are entities in themselves that cannot be forced or constrained. Yes, we can shape them. Forge them. But that is a long and arduous process and the form of our dream will change and refine as we work upon them.

 

We must also be fully prepared to understand that they will not be flawless. The cannot be. While creating them mistakes will be made – again and again. Obstacles will be encountered – over and over. Compromises will have to be made – time and time again. And the end result may not be how we imagined it would be. For the flawless nature of potential will be affected by the imperfect nature of reality. And that is something we must learn to make peace with because it does not mean we have failed. It does not mean we were unsuccessful.

 

So let’s always dare to dream! And yet let’s also never forget that to only dream is never truly enough.