Growing up and Dreaming

When you were growing up, playing at being an adult, or a bit older and in school, preparing for your future,  having daydreams, goals and aspriations of your adult life, what did you think your life would be like? Did your life turn out anything at all like you thought it would? DID you ever think this is how it would turn out? What did you
 hope for? Plan for? Dream about?
 I've posed this question to others lately, try it yourself, and the first reaction always seems to be a smile, a chuckle and a shake of the head, followed by a pretty definite "NO". What is it that we dream about, that we aspire to, that takes a shift in the road?  Do we still aspire to our youthful ideas at this time in our life? Or have we lost hope of them along the way? I believe that most of us are in some stage of happy. Very happy, somewhat happy, or reasonably happy with our lives. That's the reaction I am getting. But I also note a sense of wistfulness, a sense of drifting during our conversation. Is it remembering some forgotten, discarded dream from long ago?    If we have that yearning, that desire, can we still travel that road now? Sure the road has certainly gone under construction since then and times have changed, but it's essence is probably still there. Our world was so much smaller then, and times were different, slower, simpler and maybe our dreams have become replaced with reminiscing  more than anything else. Still, I believe that it's good to reflect. It makes us realize that life is to be lived, that life keeps changing, that we too change and grow. Like a flower in the garden many variables affect us. Sunlight, wind, dirt, temperature, nutrients these all affect each and every flower. But the flower is still recognizable for what it is. A rose is still a rose, whether in dormant stage, a buddling or in full bloom. And so are we. We are our own gardener. Life is full of possibilities. We live each day until we die. The choice is to be busy living, thriving, or just do nothing. We have choices.