During a recent short break on the Isle of Wight we visited a couple of areas that had really old and pretty looking cottages. Because lots of people come and look at these old cottages, gift shops and tea rooms have opened, in fact these now outnumber the pretty cottages and people now visit for the shops and a cream tea.
While looking in some of the gift shops I noticed a number of plaques with witty sayings and words of wisdom on them such as “Keep calm and buy this mug”. Not surprising was that a lot of these witty sayings were based on stereotypes and were either negative towards men in general or ‘her indoors’.
One plaque however, did stand out as being genuinely inspirational and prompted me to look up the original message.
“Walk with the dreamers, the believers, the courageous, the cheerful, the planners, the doers, the successful people with their heads in the clouds and their feet on the ground. Let their spirit ignite a fire within you to leave this world better than when you found it…”
– Wilferd Peterson
I thought this was relevant for a 50 plus blog, because theoretically we get to leave the world sooner rather than later. The same day I saw that quote this quote came through on Twitter:
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader”
– John Quincy Adams
The message to me was clear – walk with those who dream and inspire you and be a person who dreams and inspires others.
Where does blaming cheese come into this?! There is a verse in the bible which I think is a bit ageist.
The Day of the LORD
“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.” Joel 2:28
When we talks about our dreams, what are we actually speaking about?
Martin Luther King inspired many when he said “I have a dream…”.
The film, Les Miserables includes a moving song – “I Dreamed a Dream”.
Joseph (as in multi-coloured coat), was known for his dreams and interpreting those of others.
Then there were the dreams I had on my recent short break. These were just strange and just weird, but then I had eaten the cheese platter for dessert just a short while before going to bed.
