Ten years ago today, I was traveling through the Sacred Valley in Peru. I’d landed in Lima a few weeks before to begin my semester at a local university, and this was my first trip outside the city.
One of the reasons I chose Peru is that I’d always dreamed of visiting Machu Picchu.
But the rainy season was extra heavy that year, and floods washed away roads and train tracks to the site, forcing evacuations by airlift earlier that January. Machu Picchu was still closed months later, and it seemed likely that we would miss it.
But we didn’t. It reopened two days before our visit.
I remember so clearly that moment of waiting at the gate to go in. After all the drama of wondering whether or not we’d get to go, after travel by plane, bus, train, and bus again, we had arrived at the doorway, only to be delayed by some issue with our passports or tickets or something.
But then finally, there was that glorious moment of walking to the other side of the unobstructed in-between space, toward the threshold past which none of it could be taken away, imminence fading into arrival.
And then I turned the corner and saw my first view of the ancient city.
That was a good day.
And what I remember now most vividly + fondly a decade later is the feeling of a dream coming true in real time.
That distinct blend of awe + delight + gratitude + disorientation + fuck yes.
It’s a feeling I’ve felt before + since around dreams big + small. Like when I met my sweetheart (and realized he loved me + I loved him back), when I made my first dollars in my business, when I saw the last Star Wars movie, and (most recently) when I started teaching a class I dreamed up + shared with the world all on my own.
As I look back on all these moments, I’m remembering how much our dreams matter.
There have been times in my life when I’ve been hesitant around wanting, when I’ve been tempted to shrink from dreaming + desiring out of fear of disappointment.
And I understand that. I have been disappointed. And sometimes that’s been really hard.
But then I look back on moments like this one, walking through the Machu Picchu gates, and remember why it’s worth it.
Because every once in a while, we get to experience the wonder of our dreams coming true right in front of us.
We get to have that ecstatic, shattered feeling of expectations being eclipsed, possibility being born, and magic being real.
I hope we never stop dreaming.
I hope we cling to our beautiful visions of what could be like the lifeboats they are.
I hope we never let go of what pulls us forward, takes us deeper, and lights our way.
Our dreams matter, even in times like these.
Especially in times like these.
On behalf of the world we’re creating together, please keep dreaming.