The Man Who Dared To Dream
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To him, it seemed like hours since he had fallen asleep. In reality, it had only been a matter of minutes. Suddenly, he heard a voice call to him, “Old man!” Although he thought he had been awakened, his entire body felt heavy, and he could not move. Also, he was unable to open his eyes or speak. He heard his own voice ask, “Who is there? Who is calling me?” Again, the voice called out, “Old man!” The old man replied, “I hear you. Who are you? I cannot see you. Where are you?” Still, the voice remained in the darkness, sounding as though in the distance. “What do you want of me?” the old man asked. “Who are you?” “I am of you!” the voice replied, as it came closer and became more clear. “Wha--? What do you mean, of m..me?” the old man stuttered, as he blurted out his words. The voice was ever so clear now. “I am your entire being. I am your mind, your soul, and your conscience.” “Am I dead?” the old man asked. “Have I been condemned?” The old man was, at this moment, awakened. Shaking and clenching his blanket tightly about himself, he asked, “What am I supposed to do? What is happening?” There was no answer. And this time, the old man, being fully aware at the sound of his own voice, exclaimed, “Oh my God!” At this, his whole body trembled and he was truly in a complete state of fright from the experience. Once again, he exclaimed out loud, “My God, what am I to do? Please help me!” Tears streamed down his cheeks, blurring his vision, and dripped from the stubble on his chin. Never in his entire life had he had such an unexplainable and frightful experience. The old man sat for a very long time, clinging tightly to the blanket, which now partially covered his head, keeping it tucked under his chin. The tears dried on his shaggy, unshaven face. He just sat there, very much confused, still somewhat in shock and disbelief. Yet at the same time, he tried to make some sense of it all. Never before had he had such an experience. Although he had many regrets throughout the years and feelings of guilt, nothing ever came close to this
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About the Book
This is a story of tragedy, love, heartbreak, hope, humor, forgiveness, and the pure power of human compassion. An old man has been living on his own for many years. Although not considered a recluse or hermit, he does spend much time alone. He is guilt-ridden and has many regrets which he thinks about in his isolation. Mainly, it’s the guilt of leaving his children on that day, those many years past. His guilt haunts him in the form of dreams and nightmares. The old man is a father whose heart aches with the love for his children, yet he finds it difficult to locate the level ground on which to have a relationship, as well as a level piece of ground to deal with the choices that he has made in his life. A bird of faith, not believed to exist, befriends him and stands by him, even to protect him from a near-death tragedy, and has the ability to locate him, no matter where he is. Although once a solid blackbird, it slowly changes to white as the man sheds his guilt. He develops a passion to make sketches of the bird, and this becomes a source that creates the problem. Due to certain circumstances, he ends up in a hospital mental ward. A continuous barrage of technicalities and other circumstances make it difficult for him to attain his freedom. He captures the love of a middle-aged, not-so pretty, recovering drug addict who along with her illiteracy had a speech impediment. A dedicated doctor finds he is not too old to learn a lesson about life from his patient. And two compassionate ward nurses befriend him and help him make life-changing decisions. His impact on them is no less life-changing. Hopefully, the man who dared to dream will capture your heart, as well.
About the Author
Even as a child the author had a vivid imagination and is a dream chaser. The author has had no formal training in the field of literature or liberal arts, but is has been well documented in his personal writings that, yet as an adult, he attests to being a dreamer. He has been told and reminded of the same during his life, many times over and it many ways. Although the basic story of The Man Who Dared to Dream is strictly his interpretation of a fictional circumstance with fictional characters, it is his vehicle to express his remorse and guilt for making bad decisions as an adult, as well as a way to express how friendship, love, and compassion for our fellow man can have its own reward and accolades. This book is his first major literary venture. The simple fact is, one morning the author, after returning home from a family affair, was siting in his chair and had the overwhelming urge to write something. Although he had no idea, when he touched his pencil to the sheet of paper and wrote the words "the old man sat alone" the rest of the story followed as though it had already been written. The only other process necessary was to allow the words to flow from his pencil onto the paper. It is his wish that readers will open the portal in their own mind and get a sense of what it might be like to be one ---that is, if they are not dreamers already. For him, this labor of love is yet one last dream being chased.