An elderly man, in the final days of his life, is lying in bed alone. He awakens to see a large group of people clustered around his bed. Their faces are loving, but sad.
Confused, the old man smiles weakly and whispers, “You must be my childhood friends, coming to say good-bye. I am so grateful.” Moving closer, the tallest figure gently grasps the old man’s hand and replies, “Yes, we are your best and oldest friends, but long ago you abandoned us. For we are unfulfilled promises of your youth. We are the unrealized hopes, dreams, and plans that you once felt deeply in your heart, but never pursued. We are the unique talents that you never refined, the special gifts you never discovered. Old friend, we have not come to comfort you, but to die with you.”
Try very hard not to lose your dream or your ideal, It is not easy to find it once you have lost it – the pressure of life is too strong by then.
– Frank Wright
