by David D. Horowitz.
“And Mickey Mays bashes a walk-off grand slam to win the World Series! Just listen to fans clamor for their dream player, Mickey Mays!”
“This year’s Nobel Prize in Literature is being awarded to Mickey Mays!”
“FAME Magazine announces this year’s Most Handsome Man… Mickey Mays!”
“And today film star Mickey Mays will receive his own star on Hollywood Boulevard! Live coverage begins at 11:30 a.m.”
“We’re presenting recording artist Mickey Mays with a gold record!”
The internal dialogue of almost any American—and of millions elsewhere, too—centers on the desire for fame and the ostensible unfairness of their not being more famous. Imagined prizes, awards, trophies, guest lectureships, and auditoriums packed with rapt, worshipful fans—they all reflect desire for vindication of the person who feels unfairly overlooked and underappreciated. Whether an American is a novelist, athlete, painter, architect, plumber, bus driver, housewife, attorney, police officer, or waiter, most harbor a dream of becoming famous. And most experience disappointment and jealous resentment when the clamoring dream doesn’t materialize.
Yet, we need not be slaves to circumstance. We can give each other prizes! We can kiss and hug our loved ones! We can thank a neighbor for a favor by reciprocating the favor, and we can start a clothing drive for people far more indigent than ourselves. We can learn to appreciate small victories: a satisfied customer, a grateful son or daughter, compliments from a fan or teacher or peer. We can turn a frown over lack of fame to a deep breath expressing recommitment to important, mundane tasks.
For dreams, however compelling and beautiful, at some point yield to reality. Yes, “reality”—that endlessly debated term, which more than a few famous academics doubt exists. Let me humbly suggest reality does exist; ask some bored office worker feeling stuck in a beige and gray life whether their job is real, or whether the hunger they would experience without the job is real, too. We can always dream, though. Let dreams, especially those in which underappreciated folks feel famous and celebrated, keep filling minds at midnight. But most shouldn’t forget to set their alarm for 6:00 a.m. As they say in showbiz: don’t quit your day gig just yet.