By Emily Stonehouse
To dream the impossible dream.
That was the theme of the newspaper this week. From celebrating the memories of Canoe FM founding father Don Cameron, to an aquatic rehabilitation facility opening up in Gelert, to a new theatre company that opens the doors for young people in the community, these were concepts that all started as nothing more than dreams.
It got me thinking: what would this town be without the dreamers? The folks who are repeatedly told “no”. The ones who tear through the red tape with the machetes of their minds. The ones who don’t give up.
The theme of the dreamer presents itself regularly in our day-to-day lives. From Disney’s A dream is a wish your heart makes, to Martin Luther King’s I have a dream speech, the concept of big dreams makes our world bright, hopeful, and optimistic. Yet, sometimes dreams are easier said than done.
I remember when Canoe FM started, 20 years ago. “There were a lot of naysayers,” said Greg Roe, a current host and a pioneer in the early days of development for the station.
I was one of those naysayers. I didn’t think it would take. Didn’t think the community would run with it. Didn’t understand the need.
20 years later, and I get it. Canoe FM is the spine that binds our little towns together. It is the heart of the highlands, the pulse of the population. Don Cameron saw a need for it in the community. He dreamed it would work, and it did.
Where would we be without the dreamers?
Quite simply, we would be stuck. We would be stagnant. And worst of all, we would be all too comfortable.
To have a dream is to push beyond the realms of relatable comfort. It is to break the barriers of basics. And it is not a quality that every person has; only the brave ones can dream.
I was lucky to have a series of interviews this week where the word “dream” emerged organically more than once. Yet, in juxtaposition of the freedom of dreams, many dreamers have been counteracted. There have been challenges, consequences, and frustrations along the journey.
But the beauty of a dreamer is that they keep going, because the reason they had the dream in the first place, is because they care about it. If your heart isn’t behind a dream, it’s no more than a fleeting thought. It’s the passion and power and soul that are embedded into the thought that allows for the metamorphosis from a passing idea, to a dream that can bloom.
So, here is to our village of dreamers. The ones who saw a need for something in our community, and ran with it. The ones who pushed through the barriers, and opened up a world of wonder. The ones who make our time on this planet a little bit brighter. The ones who dream the impossible dreams, for all of us.
