Dreams and Realities

Have you ever stopped to day dream about what you want your life to be like? What you want to do when you grow up? Where you will live? What will your house look like? Will you marry, and if so what type of person do you see yourself marrying? How many kids do you dream about having? What do you dream that your kids will do? Will they run around happily playing? Will they grow up to have good lives? What will your neighborhood be like? etc. etc. etc. I am sure many of us have taken some time out of our days to think about similar thoughts. I am almost positive too that the thoughts we have all day dreamed about have been happy ones, with sunny days in the background, kids laughing, pretty neighborhoods, and fun times. I guess I just wanted to say keep dreaming these thoughts and enjoy your daydreams and hopefully reality one day too. You don't know how fortunate you are that your daydreams are like this, so happy and hopeful.

I guess you could say today was a rough one...a heavy day that's for sure. The kids I work with here in South Central are not your ordinary kids. While they have the ordinary kid problems and worries like if kids will like them, are they cute enough, and have homework that they don't like, they also have worries and problems that are so incredibly heavy. I know we all have heard about kids being raised in neighborhoods that are not like your daydreams, but honestly my heart breaks for the kiddos I work with here in LA when I realize what their neighborhoods are like and what their problems and worries are.

I had a kid today describe in full detail the shooting he witnessed over the weekend. A 16 year old male who is a tough kid, no softy. Has been raised to be tough, not cry, and to be pretty aggressive. He has been involved in gangs ever since he was under the age of 8. When I met with him today the young man I met with was like a young boy. Fearful for his life and his families lives. And this is not the first time he has felt this way. This is the 4th shooting he has been witness to, which may be an underestimate in all honesty. He recalled a time when he was under the age of 5 where kids on his street used to run around, play soccer and hang out on their front yards and street and sees the stark difference of today when people do not got out unless they have to go somewhere. No one plays on the streets anymore, at least not on his street. And his street is not the only street I hear about this. The majority of my kids say the same thing.

I could not help but be so proud of this young man I was meeting with today and meet with every Wednesday night. While he lives in such a terrifying world and has experienced so much we can't even understand he is thriving. He resembles resiliency to a T. He is making good choices and is going to be graduating from high school on time, not an easy task in South Central. Seriously did you ever worry that you would not graduate on time? That was never even a thought of mine. He is no longer gang involved and is working on being a positive male in the lives of his mother and sister. (of course his father is not around) I am so proud of him for all of his efforts.

I really just can't believe how lucky I am. I am so fortunate and I am certain many of you reading this are extremely fortunate as well. While I know we all have our challenges and our lives have not been roses we still have so much to be thankful for. I am thankful for the daydreams I have and the ability for my brain to have the dreams it has.

Everytime I meet with the kids I work with I lend my daydreams to them, through the hope, belief, and sincerity I offer to them. While I always stay realistic I never stop trying to lend out my optimism. I try hard to do this and know that the kids I am working with are borrowing my daydreams, I just pray that for them they could borrow them long enough to turn them into their reality. Dreams do come true is what we are brought up believing but my worry is that if they can't even dream it how will they get it to come true.

So if you happen to meet someone who you can tell is having a hard time dreaming, offer up your hope, your dream to them, let them borrow it for as long as they need to. Even though it is hard to see the positive end result when I am in the thick of it I know a change is gonna come, one day it will and that is what keeps me dreaming for those around me. All it takes is 1.