“When life itself seems lunatic, who knows where madness lies? Perhaps to be too practical is madness. To surrender dreams – this may be madness. Too much sanity may be madness – and maddest of all: to see life as it is, and not as it should be!”
When Miguel de Cervantes penned these words for his character Don Quixote in 1605, I wonder if he imagined the extent to which they would resonate to so many people around the world for hundreds of years.
I was fortunate to visit Madrid recently and, while exploring the city’s museums and barrios, I reflected on Don Quixote’s declaration that “to surrender dreams – this may be madness.”
Whenever my life becomes chaotic or overwhelming, the time I dedicate to nurturing my dreams is often the first casualty. I am sometimes quick to surrender my dreams to the bottom of my priority list, telling myself that I’ll focus on them later when I have more time, more stamina, more headspace, more serenity.
I find it easy to become lost in the mundanity of life. Everyday life IS important – cherishing our loved ones, caring for our children, nurturing significant relationships, earning money to live and thrive, contributing to our community – but dreams are important, too.
Days roll by with relentless speed. My to-do list will always be filled with mundane tasks, administrative chores, house maintenance, bills to pay, blah, blah, blah. It’s the stuff of life and can’t be avoided, but it doesn’t need to take over.
Our dreams open our minds to new ideas, inspire us to create, allow our imaginations to soar, fill our hearts with a profound sense of our own humanity and the world.
It was a special time for me to escape from my day-to-day life for a few days in Madrid and give myself time to focus on my dreams. I participated in a literary event, shared with others about my writing process and inspiration, visited museums with an art-loving friend, listened and learned from others, allowed myself the time and headspace to let my mind create and my imagination run wild. I took time to nurture my dreams, and it felt amazing.
I arrived home from Madrid with a clear realisation that for dreams to thrive and become reality they must be nurtured every day, like clipping and training the branches and roots of a bonsai. I need to carve out time in my busy day to focus on my dreams, and view that time as sacred. I want to continue visiting art museums, travelling near and far, embracing new experiences, all of which are critical to nurturing my dreams and allowing my creativity to soar. Whenever I travel, I adopt certain habits so that writerly inspiration is at the forefront of my mind. You can find my top tips of travelling like a writer and reader here.
Allow your dreams to ebb and flow and change direction. Let them sit quietly on the sidelines for short periods while you consider your next steps. But don’t forget them.
Whatever your dreams, large or small, long-term or short-term, don’t neglect them. Don’t surrender your dreams to mundanity, practicality or – like Don Quixote’s warning to us all – allowing yourself to have too much sanity.
Be a bit crazy like Don Quixote, and lunge at a windmill. See life as it could be.