Growing up as a kid with a lot of potential, I only learned one way to dream. And it is to dream high. I always imagined myself changing the world. To be honest, I don’t know how, but as a kid, I believed it was possible. I believed I can. And I believed achieving the highest of the high is the only way to prove my potential… and my worth.

I think high school ako noon nung nabasa ko sa isang newspaper article na sinulat ni Daryl Pasion na mas magandang ituro sa mga bata na imbes mangarap nang mataas, matutong mangarap nang malalim. That teaching kids to dream with depth is “to give them not wings to fly but roots to grow”. Imagine a kid dreaming to be a lawyer, not because it is the highest profession but because the kid wants to be a lawyer for the oppressed.

if you want to read the article too, you can find it here.

That article stuck with me. My plans changed. And I’ve learned to make sure my dreams are not stars that needed ladder to achieve but seeds that are rooted with love and my own why. Doon ko unang natutunang okay lang palang maging maliit. Because dreams are better measured with depth, not by height.

But years after, with shame, I’ll tell you that this fast-paced world made me forget all of that. I realized that this world is too big for me to change. I forgot to measure my dreams with depth… or even with height. I even forget my dreams to begin with.

Paano ka ba mangangarap kung ang priority mo ay survival? Kung 9 hours ng araw mo mapupunta sa trabaho, 3-4 hours sa byahe, 1-2 hours sa pagpe-prepare makapasok sa trabaho, at yung natitira para sa pahinga at pamilya? Paano ka mangangarap kung wala kang safety net? Kung nakakatakot sumugal kasi kung gaano kamahal sumubok doble non ang mabigo?

Paano ka mangangarap sa bansang pati pangarap mahal ang puhunan? Paano ka mangangarap sa bansang ang taas ng bilihin pero ang baba ng sahod? Paano mo maaalalang mangarap kung una mong kailangang alalahanin yung pambayad ng kuryente at pagkain sa mesa?

At some point, nanliit ako. Ang laki ng mundo, saan ba ako pupwesto? I counted the dreams I didn’t get to pursue. The side quests I wanted to try but I wasn’t able to. The years of wasted potential.

Pero dun ko mas naintindihan kung bakit kailangan kong mangarap nang malalim. Because dreams that are rooted with purpose are dreams that never fade away. Ayun yung pangarap na kukulbitin ka sa gabi at ipapaalalang hangga’t pwede pa, pwede pa. Those are the dreams that patiently wait for you. Those are the dreams that will remind you of your why.

Those are the dreams that will remind you that small steps matter too. Makakarating ka rin.

So dream deep. It may or may not happen. But it was meaningful enough to let you see that the world is big and being small means there will always be enough space for you here.