THE FUTURE INDIDE YOU
EDITOR’S OPINION
“What I’m about to say may upset you, so get ready,” he said. The attendees of the second annual New Jersey Society of Fire Service Instructors Conference listened attentively. “There is no future in training in the fire service. Indeed, there is no future in the fire service,” he said, his voice dropping almost to a whisper. “The future, whatever and wherever it is, is you…. It is now. Right now.”
Dr. Denis Onieal, a career line deputy chief with the Jersey City (NJ) Fire Department, was articulating a truth that too often gets buried beneath the trappings of day-to-day survival: The future exists as a vision within us. It is the actualization of our collective vision, the sum total of our dreams pursued and realized, our mental abstractions externalized in the concrete reality of today. The future will be as great or as bleak as our dreams and achievements. The future waits for us to create it from the great promise of imagination that lies within us.
We like to talk and think about the future. It is the subject of speeches, articles, and coffee klatches. We predict it, plan for it, look forward to it, and, in some cases, sit back and dread it. But we who are “ruined” by time and rules and the necessities of surviving—our senses a little blurred, our edges a little dulled, and our imaginations a little withered— tend to perceive the future its a mystical external force that works on us, something that happens to us. And we conform and adapt with resignation.
To live by such a concession is to deny the power within us. It is time—it w ill always be time—for its to recapture and live some of that power. It is the power of a child’s imagination. The power of the affirmation of life. The power of dreams.
Here is my “aphorisms for better dreaming” list, in no specific order of importance. Feel free to use it, add to it, and personalize it.
- It’s never too late for anything.
- All the great figures of history’ were dreamers.
- Commercial television emits undetectable rays from outer space that evaporate the brain’s dreaming cells.
- The quality of dreams is not a function of rank or age or quantity of life experiences.
- Set aside time for dream training in addition to practical training.
- Nurturing the natural dreaming brilliance of youth is one
- of the greatest gifts you can give to the world.
- Dreams cannot be fulfilled without the help of others.
- Dreams don’t carry a price tag.
- Dreams make you strong inside.
- Small dreams become big dreams.
- A dream is not of less value because it won’t change the course of human events.
- People who achieve their dreams usually leave in their wake a slew of skeptical “experts.”
- Listen to the dreams of others.
- Never laugh at anyone’s dreams. There is no such thing as a stupid dream (as long as it’s filled with good intent).
- Dreams are limitless. Limits are for close-minded people.
- Dream exercise is important. (Say to yourself, for example, “For 10 minutes each morning, ntxm, and evening of every day I w ill stop whatever I’m doing to think about big-picture stuff—who I am and what my relationship is with the world. I will take deep breaths and lcx)k up in the sky and let the vastness and power of the world sink into me. I will reaffirm my acceptance of the power of life and promise to use it as best I can,” or something like that—whatever works for you.)
- Don’t forever keep your dreams in your pocket. Take them out sometimes and shine them around for others to see the light.
- Realizing your dream always carries, to some extent, the element of risk.
- Adversity, for a dreamer, is an opportunity.
- Dreams cannot be fulfilled without determination, persistence, and hard work.
You are the leaders and instructors of the fire service. Today you hold the future in your hearts and minds. It is up to you—today and every day—to determine if the fire service will be better off because you dared to dream and create an environment that encouraged others to dare to dream with you.
In the words of Dr. Onieal, “You cannot let the future lie fallow, or wait for it to arrive. You cannot entrust it to others, hoping that they’ll do something w ith it. It is yours, and you shall be held responsible. .And it starts right now!”
