许栩 香港中文大学

To Strive Or To Dream?

In one of my English classes this semester, our teacher asked us to put down top five things we hope to accomplish. It turned out that the things listed were practically identical, a splendid score in iBT or GRE, or a new record of GPA.

Never before have I realized that our goals are so similar, our visions are so narrow and that we are focusing too much on the practical goals rather than what can truly make us happy.

The moment I entered university, I found that students were flocking to take up business, laws, and medicine. Does the 2008 Beijing Olympic slogan --- “one world, one dream” --- really work well? I am afraid not. Dreams, by their nature, should be diversified and unique. Being a CEO, a lawyer, or a doctor really does help reap the rewards, making your parents proud, your teachers contented, your friends impressed. But it’s not a dream. You are just playing it safe. That’s also why people are encountering middle-age crisis. It’s a sad truth that we are too busy satisfying our basic needs of comfort, security and control, and that we are too engaged in being somebody in others’ eyes to remember who we once were.

Well, I am not against the idea of striving. It’s part of our nature, it enables us to survive and even thrive in this competitive world, and it’s the accumulation of each one’s striving that contributes to the fulfillment of the whole society’s big dreams. But what I emphasize here is that we too often look outward while ignoring what happens inward. Why don’t we stick to something that can identify ourselves? Why not hold firmly onto our dreams?

Life is like ballooning. You can fly faster and higher than others, but without knowing who you are and where you are heading, all your struggling and striving will vanish into air. It is through dreaming that you figure out what you strive for; otherwise you will eventually feel confused and lost.

After all, we are all ordinary people trying to make an honest living; and at the same time we can also be extraordinary people fighting to realize our dreams. It’s our dreams that open up ample opportunities to recognize ourselves. It is our dreams that offer us the chance to lead a spontaneous life and it is our dreams that make sense of our striving. So cherish and value what’s deep down inside your heart.