Dream Keepers

Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.          — Harriet Tubman

I love the word:  DREAM.  It must be one of my favorites.

Growing up, I remember my mother playing an old Everly Brothers album; I particularly loved the song, “All I Have to Do is Dream”... "Dreeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaam… Dream, dream, dream…”  (Can you hear it?)  Magical…downright, well, dreamy.

Later on, I loved the Fleetwood Mac song, “Dreams”.  I didn’t understand all of its meanings (not sure I do, even today), but I loved Stevie Nicks’ spooky voice, oozing as if performing a supernatural meditation about dreams in a far away place, perhaps not even of this earth.

More recently, I have come to love much of Langston Hughes’ work:


Dreams
by Langston Hughes


Hold fast to dreams

For if dreams die

Life is a broken-winged bird

That cannot fly.


Hold fast to dreams

For when dreams go

Life is a barren field

Frozen with snow.

*****



The Dream Keeper
By Langston Hughes

Bring me all of your dreams,
You dreamers,
Bring me all of your
Heart melodies
That I may wrap them
In a blue cloud-cloth
Away from the too-rough fingers
Of the world.


*****

As a teacher and literacy coach, I want to be a dream keeper for teachers and students.

As teachers and citizens, I think we need to recognize who our dream keepers are and are not.  Be wary of letting those who would use their “too-rough fingers” to destroy your dreams.  Find dream keepers who can be trusted with your “heart melodies” and who will care for and nurture your dreams “in a blue cloud-cloth.”

In America in 2013, teachers have been lambasted for the ails of society:  poverty, broken homes, drug use, child abuse, violence that permeates media and daily life, fetal alcohol syndrome, and depression, are among the plethora of concerns that children carry with them into our nation's classrooms. 

I write to the politicians that supposedly represent the people of this country, expressing my thinking and vision.  

One local politician wrote a response to my concerns about our state’s desire to pass laws that make teaching more difficult and earning positive evaluations nearly impossible... as well as laws that have resulted in successfully freezing our salaries for years.  I plead with her to respect teachers who have invested their money, time, and very lives in our noble profession.  Her reply is quoted here:

 “We are mindful that teachers are dealing with children from a variety backgrounds, and with many who are under emotional stress under which many adults would wilt… The economic climate is not conducive to continuing annual increases based solely on experience and education.”

Politicians are not our dream keepers.  Politicians say they understand that our children “are under emotional stress under which many adults would wilt,” but in the next breath go on to say that our experiences and education are meaningless and that we (and our students) are not worthy of our paychecks.

Recognize this:  they are not our dream keepers.  They are not worthy of our heart melodies.  They ARE among the “too-rough fingers of the world" and perpetuate misguided beliefs that are seemingly destined to crush dreams...or, at best, defer them until a later time when they are no longer in office.

So though they would rather see our “Dream Deferred,” do not give up on pleading with them to respect your dreams for your students and education in America, don’t count on any politician to be among your dream keepers.



A DREAM DEFERRED
By Langston Hughes


What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?

*****


It’s important to trust the right people with your dreams.  So who are the dream keepers in your life? 

My family members, particularly my sisters and husband, are among the most supportive people in my life.  They listen, making it “safe” to risk sharing even my darkest or most confused thoughts.  They give thoughtful guidance and advice that lead me back into the light, time after time.  I know that anything I say to them remains between us; they tenderly wrap my dreams in the “blue cloud-cloth,” sheltering them from the “too-rough fingers of the world.”

My colleagues and friends are among my dream keepers.  I am finding that as a coach, I need to focus on keeping teachers safe and comfortable in their teaching dream.  Envisioning dreams together helps bring them into reality.  This is part of coaching:  learning what the teacher is dreaming of changing or trying and then guiding his/her thinking, planning, implementation, and reflection to realize and sustain the dream.  I hope I am worthy of such a job:  dream keeper… co-dreamer… co-captain of realizing dreams.  Dream Sustainer.  

Children are certainly powerful dream keepers.  While I don’t necessarily directly share dreams with them, their learning and energy certainly drive me to imagine ways to make learning more authentic by providing the richest experiences possible.  Why?

Because as an educator, I am among the most powerful dream keepers in their lives. 


Everyone is a dreamer; sometimes, teachers are the only dream keepers for their students.  We must keep them in our care without fear, without shame—recognizing their beauty.

All of us come in different colors, from different backgrounds, and have different dreams.  Langston addresses his beauty in “Dream Variations” where all of us—and our dreams-- are kept safe and appreciated.


Dream Variation


To fling my arms wide
In some place of the sun,
To whirl and to dance
Till the white day is done.
Then rest at cool evening
Beneath a tall tree
While night comes on gently,
Dark like me-
That is my dream!

To fling my arms wide
In the face of the sun,
Dance! Whirl! Whirl!
Till the quick day is done.
Rest at pale evening...
A tall, slim tree...
Night coming tenderly
Black like me.

Langston Hughes


In what ways do you keep your dreams, your colleagues’ dreams, and your students’ dreams safe from the too-rough fingers of the world?