SCRIPTURE: Joel 2:28   And it will come about after this That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and daughters will prophesy, Your old men will dream dreams, and Your young men will see visions.  (NAS)

REFLECTION:  My mother, though not an young “man,” envisioned being an artist and a dancer. For complex reasons, those visions never came to fruition. She went on with her life, raising a family while working full time. When she retired her husband, my stepfather, transferred in his job so they could relocate to New England.

Released from her child-raising and employment demands, she blossomed. She passed her driver’s test in her sixties and graduated from college in her seventies. Then, as an old woman had a new dream---to attend seminary.

Then her husband’s health worsened. As his caregiver, she had to sacrifice yet another dream.

I believe the hopelessness resulting from this loss and the demands of being a full-time caregiver contributed to the heart problem that caused her death. Her husband lived a number of years longer.

She had a vision and was fulfilling it. She was not yet “old,” and believed she had time to reach her dream. But life has a way of changing our plans.

What is your vision for your life? How can you accomplish that vision while meeting the many demands just living creates for you?

A vision is a passion that, if it is not fed, can destroy you, as it did my mother. Nurture your vision. It will improve your life, and perhaps even prolong it. Don’t give up that dream!