When I was a kid, I'd sometimes....

When I was a kid, I'd sometimes lie down with the grass tickling the back of my neck. Then I'd stare up at the sky, look at the shapes in the clouds, and wonder.

What will the future hold? What will I be? I couldn't wait to grow up and get some independence and freedom!

I thought, I won't have to clean up my room unless I wanted to. I could be as rebellious (and filthy) as I liked. :)

I could do whatever I wanted! Maybe drive race cars. It would be even better than my bike!

Or become a mad scientist, using all kinds of different colored potions in test tubes. They'd all be bubbling and giving off smoke, of course!

Or perhaps a fireman. Sliding down that pole when the firebell rang, so I could jump on the fire truck and we could race to the fire.

As the years have gone by, my dreams have changed, as our dreams do. But I still have my dreams, that has never changed.

I grew from being a child, dependent on his mother and father, into a responsible adult. I began a career, working hard. That evolved into an attempt to follow the idea of freedom and transform that into a lifestyle of independence.

Isn't that what we'd all like to do?

Our dreams are within our reach, but we must keep the dream alive, and keep striving for that wonderful goal.

Thank God for our freedoms to strive for our independence and prosperity.

Dien Rice