::I've got a dream! I've got some dreams!::


"I just want to see the floating lanterns gleam! And with every passing hour, I'm so glad I left my tower! Like all you lovely folks I've got a dream!"

One, I love the movie, Tangled. It's got great music, it's hilarious, Pascal and Max are some of the best sidekicks, and Flynn/Eugene's smolder absolutely makes the movie. Two, this is such a fun song! If you've never heard this song before or want to do so again, click here. Rapunzel openly spills the dream of her heart to a bunch of ruffians. She wants to see the floating lanterns that are released every year on her birthday and she'll do whatever it takes to get there. Even if that means taking a strange and very sketchy man captive with a frying pan and leaving her tower for the first time in forever (see what I did there, fellow Disney fans?). Oftentimes pursuing your dreams means you have to leave the safety and familiarity of your tower and wander in the great wide somewhere to make your dream come true. It takes risk, passion, determination and as a Christian, a lot of faith and trust in God.

See? I'm always reading! Well, half-kidding.
Rapunzel was chasing after a dream of her heart and I'm going to do a slight twist and talk about a dream job. When I was 7 or 8 years old, I wanted to be a veterinarian. I loved animals as a child and thought it'd be cool to work with them. That lasted a few years until someone told me how much school and science were involved. I gave up that dream and contemplated becoming a zookeeper for a bit but my heart wasn't in it. Then I went to college with no particular ambitions or if you prefer, dreams. I wasn't the freshman who knew exactly what she wanted to major in and where she wanted to go to grad school afterwards. Or the freshman who came in saying she longed to be a missionary doctor to a third world country or a civil engineer or a college professor someday. I was the girl who waited until the last minute to decide what she wanted to major in (I'm majoring in English Literature in case anybody forgot) and unexpectedly added Spanish as her second major in her junior year. Despite the double major deal, I still have had no idea what I want to do with my life. And in case you're wondering, no, I don't want to become a classroom teacher of English or ESL or anything else. Which is hard. It is hard to be stuck in the tower of indecision and uncertainty especially the older I get. People say, "oh, you have time" and wave it off your first two years of college. But they expect you to know or to have some ideas when you're a junior and especially when you're a senior (aka what I'm about to become). "You're a Wheaton student. Don't you have dreams and ambitions? Don't you want to change the world and see it be a better place because of Christ and His Kingdom?" Yes, I do but I don't know what medium that will be through.

But sometimes for your dreams to come about, you need a catalyst, and maybe in mine and Rapunzel's cases, an unexpected one. Rapunzel got Flynn Ryder in her tower and I had a week at family camp which was not quite as dramatic but perhaps just as fun. Rapunzel knocked Flynn out, took away his satchel, and forced him to be her guide to the floating lanterns which takes a lot of guts. My realization was a bit more gentle. As part of my internship, I spent a week of family camp, helping out with the kids and taking some pictures and videos of camp life. I thought about how hard it would be to go back to the photo studio after the week was over. I realized that building relationships with kids and spending time with them is what is life-giving to me. And with that, the door to my tower swung open and I started slowly going down my ladder of metaphorical hair. What could I do with kids as a job? Honestly, if I could be a perpetual camp counselor with time off between sessions, I probably would. But since that's not feasible, I'll settle for being a children's librarian in a public library. Yes, that is my new dream! I get to combine two things I love, books and kids. It's a community and relationship-oriented job, I don't have to dress formally for it, and I get to learn a little bit of everything. I'll be able to see regulars and meet new people, help kids learn (differently than in a classroom), and keep growing myself. That sounds pretty cool to me!

What, when, where, and how? I don't have answers to those questions yet. But I'm outside of the tower now. I'm enjoying the grass, flowers, and trees. I have a lot of research and planning to do. I don't know what is possible, how hard it will be, or how many obstacles I'll face. The good news is I have God as my guide--a tad better than Flynn Ryder, no offense to him--, friends and family by my side, and a lovely amount of youthful optimism, determination, and dreaminess. Will this dream come true? Will I work at this job forever? Will I live happily ever after? I have no idea, so stay tuned to this blog--assuming I still use this in 5 years--and we'll see where God takes me. But I don't think I'll end up being the long-lost princess of some unknown kingdom as probable as that sounds. However, if I do, I'll be sure to invite you over to my castle.

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