A DREAM; A HYPOTHESIS OF REALITY.

(This one is dedicated to my friend, a brother, who together we dreamed, and patted each other on our backs, and parted knowing one day we’ll live those dreams before we leave this earth. Abdi Mohammed, this one is for you my brother)

I woke up last night from a very disturbing dream. I racked my brain for a possible inference, what many of you would consider calling an interpretation. A great endeavour indeed. I gave up, the attempt was rather disturbing than the actual dream. Clearly interpretation of dreams and trances is not a gift given to us all. You remember Joseph, the character from the Bible? Or similarly, Daniel, both of whom were perfect in their interpretations? Their interpretations didn’t seem to augur well with those they targeted. The dream interpretations did however come to pass, no matter how negative they portrayed.
Back then when I was in high-school, we had a colleague, Aaron, who would dream and make so frightening and worrying interpretations, scaring the wits out of us when he told of them in the morning chapel assembly. For a long time, I have always found dreams intriguing and utterly incomprehensible.
Nevertheless, there is another drift of dreams I find myself remarkably familiar with. This is because I find myself such a dreamer, as the one Kenny Rogers once sang about in his 80’s classic. The kind of a dreamer as my friend is, and who am obliged to introduce to you. His name is Francis but we nicknamed him ‘Meme’ short for ‘Umeme’, for his electric running. He is a great guy and more so a dreamer of his kind. A dreamer who believes in his dreams so much, that he holds on to his dreams even when life unfolds the worst chapter.
Francis and I literally grew together, did all childhood fun together. We made wired toys, paper balls, rode tyres and bikes together, grew fond of girls, fought out of similar interest, you name it. Typical of young male friends. We however went to different schools. I attended a rather affluent private academy, and I often wished I could share a desk with him. Unfortunately, as much as we had so much in common, Francis was from quite a poor background, and even the public school he attended was at more times than not proving strenuous for his single mother.
For a guy we shared a dream of once being prominent lawyers and the cream of this society, his would have been regarded more of a pipe dream, and his confidence more of empty chest thumping. When we sat for our K.C.P.E, Francis performed quite well considering he rarely attended class due to financial duress. But this was as far as he could go with his quest for education. Paying his secondary fee was more than an uphill task that his mother opted to avoid. Just to demonstrate how difficult the state of affairs was for him and his family of three children, Francis had to go back to his school to do manual work to cover up for his arrears. I felt so hurt and even avoided him so as not to tell him that I had received my admission letter to secondary school. When I was finally leaving for school, he moved me with his inspiring parting shot, he told me, “Go and do it for us who wish we had the privilege.” I almost wept… okay I admit it, it came busting out like a spring, stung my eyes, and as I hid my face in my palms, he tapped my back. Nothing more relieving like the comfort of a dreamer of his worth.
For the four years in high school I strived to get my optimum best. As for Francis, all he could do was learn some basic mechanic work as an apprentice. The little he could amass was just enough to help his mum as they pushed his younger brother through primary school. Currently, due to his undying effort, and by putting his best foot forward, he has been able to see his younger brother get to secondary school, to at least have a closer taste to achieving his own dreams. A few days ago, he got quite a good catch after repairing a client’s generator. So he called me over at the local pub to celebrate over a bottle of Allsops. We chatted like always, then he hit me with a shocker, he told me that he knows one day, he will be day standing against me in a court of law. I should have thought he meant that maybe he will end up a robber or something and that maybe ill prosecute him and see him into prison. But for a man with such a will and zeal for life, a man with a character as strong as his, what he meant was the exact contrary. What he meant is that he still held on to that ancient and almost shattered dream, to become a lawyer of our times.
That’s the beauty of holding on to a dream. I will never be surprised if in future Francis and I start a law firm together. It’s great how a flame of a dream out-burns all hardships and disappointments. And even though all we dream might never all come to pass, holding on to that dream leaves the heart at constant peace with itself. They say life is not a bed of roses. Comfort zones and cocoons of satisfaction are only theories practical in the life of love and romance, I can attest to that. Dreamers that never get satisfied with what life is offering at any given moment are characters to reckon with.
So many times we dream and fail to have that urge to go that extra mile. No matter how inconvenient the circumstances seem to be, life expects us to always carry a reason for a smile, nothing does this better than hope, more so, a dream.
The greatest dreamers however have a sparkle that most of us tend to overlook. They don’t dream selfishly. They dream to help humanity and those that look up to them. Suppose Francis’s father had had a conscious dream of bringing up a relevant family unit? (His father deserted them when he was merely 10 years old.) Well, I am certain Francis would have lived a different life altogether. Some of the greatest achievers put the interests of fellow human beings in the midst of their own dreams. Say for example a politician, who dreams of helping his community have good infrastructure, or good education, or health, other than just dreaming of himself sitting in the parliamentary chambers, that’s the kind of a dreamer who adds a difference. Great dreamers dream of attaining good and relevant positions to make other peoples’ lives better.
Another critical aspect is working towards realization. No matter how appealing a dream may seem to be, the best of us are those that wake up from them and work towards their realization. We need to put discouragements behind us. Just like a boat in the waters, with its oars that push the tide behind for it to move forth.

The next time I wake up from a dream, ill certainly not strive to interpret it. Ill rise from that bed and strive to live my dreams. (Hoping we all understand the difference here.) Dreams of being a leader of my people, dreams of being a substantial lawyer, to bring change to a forgotten constituency, change to a country scourged with scars of being forsaken by their leaders. Dreams of prominence, to rightfully and justifiably represent my clients in courts of law, to see a helpless mother get her grabbed land back, to see an accused suspect free from corruption induced sentences. To become a loving husband, a caring father, a mentor and an inspiration to those who dare to dream, those that realize that a dream is not just a dream, it’s a hypothesis of reality. That if natured appropriately, a dream is as real as reality. My mummy once told me, “Life is made of dreams and reality. Dream, my son, for it’s the realest it can get.”


Catch you later, I have a dream to chase…