Plastic flowers & Paper hearts

“Yet their eyes sparkle like diamonds; Like ocean foam glistening defiantly in the light of a cold dawn, bashing relentlessly against the shore”

Life has a way of wearing us down. It has a way of taking the better, brighter parts of us, and grinding them off. Dulling us out, both in stature and shine, till all that’s left is a remnant of a spirit that once shone so brightly.

and thats reality. 

This world is dark. 

The outlook is bleak. 

And there’s nothing we can do to change it.

The original title of this post was “The importance of dreams.” A title whose nuances I failed to grasp for two years. It’s been that length of time since I posted anything to this blog; definitely not from a lack of effort… but, I think, a lack of understanding. I know dreams are important. And while I stuggled to put the justification for that “fact“ into words, I littered countless drafts with advice on how we should never stop dreaming, and why dreams are vital for our soul-.

All the while, Two Years of life taking its toll on mine. Two Years of life wearing me down. The whole time looking for the silver lining where there wasn’t one. I subconciously chose to believe that if I just held on to the notion of dreams- that the pain of reality would be held at bay. But dreams can only take you so far on that endeavor. And given that realization, I’d like to shift the focus from the dreams themselves to the importance of the act of dreaming. 

I recently had my world shaken in the most unexpected way, by someone who came into it out of seemingly nowhere. They were unassuming, and quiet. Not Eccentric. Not ambitious, but attentive. Calm. Stoic. 

Yet.. they shine brighter than anyone I’ve ever known. And in spending time with them, I’ve come to renew faith in a belief I’d let go of a long time ago: That True strength comes from showing weakness. True power comes from revealing our insecurities. & True love flows from an unwillingness to close ourselves off.

This person has dealt with life. They’ve dealt with pain and fears and doubts. They’ve stared directly into the darkness of this world. 

–Yet their eyes sparkle like diamonds; Like ocean foam glistening defiantly in the light of a cold dawn, bashing relentlessly against the shore. Resolute in their refusal to let the darkness win. 

That, I believe, was the part that I missed. Dreams themselves are important, but not as important as dreaming. For to dream is see the world as it could be, not as it is. To dream is to have the courage to see beauty where no others would dare look for it.  

Both in the world...

And in our brokenness.

Life is a beautiful journey. Like any journey, it has highs and lows. Peaks and valleys. Times when you feel lost... And times when you're sure of where you're going. You meet people along the way. Some encourage you on while others lure you from your path. Sometimes, people pass you. And sometimes, you pass them. It doesn't mean you're any less capable or worthy- it just means you needed a little more time to take in the view and understand where you are. We can either spend our time trying to make sense of and guide the madness- or accept that we'll never fully be able to, and simply cherish it's beauty while it lasts. Take each moment for what it is. The good times, and the bad. The times when it hurts and the times when the world is beneath your feet. The times when its easy… and especially the times when its hard.

Life has a way of wearing us down. It has a way of taking the better, brighter parts of us, and grinding them off. Dulling us out, both in stature and shine, till all that’s left is a remnant of a spirit that once shone so brightly.

and thats reality. 

This world is dark. 

The outlook is bleak. 

And there’s nothing we can do to change it.

. . .

But we can choose to fight it. 

Dream as if anything’s possible. Trust like you’ve never been hurt. Live as though the darkness can’t touch you. And watch as yields to the light. 

Watch as it yields to the light. 

-Ethan S. Martinez