(3) DREAMS DO COME TRUE

Author: Rizwan Ahmed Memon

           Like every child, Reyan had dreams for his future. He pursued them and worked hard to make them come true. He believed that the way a person pursues his dreams decides whether they will come true or not.

          Life doesn't always turn out the way we plan; this is something he had often heard from others. However, he believed that no one knows what will happen in the coming time, so one must plan and try to live life according to one’s plans. Everyone has hope. Life can be better than our expectations, and it can be even worse, too.

           He often asked himself, "What is it that makes people successful: hard work, money, or luck?" The more accurate answer he often found was hard work because he had seen people who had lots of money, but they were not successful. Instead, they were aloof. Those who are lucky and get to be successful don't value their success. They don't feel the importance of hard work. This reminded him the words of William Shakespeare: “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them.”

            Reyan was in high school when one day his teacher asked him, "Reyan, what is your goal in life?" "Well, sir I don’t have just one goal," said Reyan, "I have many goals and I may have some more in the future. Let me tell you some I have now. Firstly, I want to get an MA in English. Secondly, I want to do social work. Thirdly, I want to be an actor.” “Oh, an MA in English! That is a good goal, and I like the idea of social work as well. But why do you want to be an actor?" asked his teacher. "Sir, I want to change the world,” replied Reyan. “I will perform in movies and dramas that will give the message of being a good human. I will play characters that will touch people's hearts and have impact on their lives,” he continued.

             Unlike other children Reyan analyzed his dreams now and then and pondered how they could come true. What steps should be taken, and what barriers were in his way of success? He knew that little decisions that he had to make for his future would have a great effect on his life. Reyan was not a pampered child. He had to work at his brother's shop in the evening. He used to look after the buffaloes of his other brother, too. Escaping all these responsibilities was not easy for him. His brothers, though supportive, never tried to help him get ahead in his education. They were happy with what they had given him to do. Reyan knew that this was not something he would do for his rest of the life. One day he said to his brother, “I want to learn English.” His brother helped him gain admission to a private institute in the city. This was the decision that would change Reyan's life forever. This was when he started the journey of his knowledge. Soon after enrolling in the English institute, he also found a computer center, where he decided to take a course in computers.

          Going from village to the city everyday was hard. He used to travel by van. Those vans were very broken-down, and sometimes when there were a lot of passengers, the driver made all the boys sit on the roof of the van or would tell them to hang on the backside of the van. After getting off the van in the city, the institutes were still at a long distance, so he had to go by foot. Out of his passion and eagerness for knowledge, Reyan put up with all those difficulties. In the morning, he took his computer course, and in the evening he studied English at the institute. He had a break at noon, so he would offer a prayer in a mosque and had something for lunch. He also worked at the shop at night and on holidays. Whenever Reyan crossed the street, he was bullied by country boys and even adults. They would say, “There goes the geek!” He didn’t pay any attention to them. They used a lot of derogatory words. One day while he was walking, a person said to him, “Hey boy, you are working hard, but there are no jobs in Pakistan!” “I am not studying for the job. I am studying for knowledge,” replied Reyan. After a year, Reyan had gained good knowledge of English and computers, so he started teaching. This was a step which would add to his knowledge and experience. Now he had left working at the shop and looking after the buffaloes. His brothers didn't say much because what he was doing was better than what they had given him to do.

          Reyan finished his matriculation. It was time to make another important decision for his future. What college to go to? Should he study science or business? He thought it all over and decided to go to the Arts and Commerce College to study business. His brother didn't like the idea of going to a Commerce College, but Reyan made him understand that this was something he wanted to do. During his college days, he made some other goals for his life such as doing bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from a university. He kept teaching, studying, and enjoying his life.

          After Reyan finished college, where he earned his intermediate degree in commerce, he prepared for university entrance exams with his friends at the library. He applied to three different universities. He got admitted to the undergraduate program in Computer Science at University of Sindh. The program at the university was quite tough for him, but he worked so hard and made his presence felt. While working toward his bachelor’s degree, he also pursued other degrees from other colleges. He earned an MA in English, too.

           Reyan now runs an institute named The REAL Learning CENTER, where he teaches computer skills and English. He thinks the best social work is giving knowledge to others and educating them. In doing so, he also earns his living. His dreams have come true except for becoming an actor. He still has a hope. He now has an online life list in which he adds new goals and marks the achieved ones. He thinks that as long as life goes on, there are dreams. Some dreams take a long time to come true and some very little. He says he hasn’t become an actor because he didn’t take this goal seriously. He still thinks he might go on screen and become an actor someday. Those people, who once made fun of Reyan, now call him ‘Sir’. He often tells his students that your dreams will only remain dreams if you don't pursue them and try very hard to make them come true. Everything that we want has its price that we have to pay.

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