Do dreams have a shelf life? An expiration date? Do we get older, wiser, more jaded and tired and finally give up on them? Should we? Life happens in ways we cannot predict. We then shift our priorities and our dreams get packed away like mementos in a dusty attic. Are they still there?

The dreams we had at 20 may not be the same as the dreams we had at 40…or 60. Some of our dreams age like wine and become misty memories of days gone by like the girl we should have kissed in high school…or the one we shouldn’thave. We may smile and fondly remember that we were sure we were going to be an author, or a doctor, or a world traveler, but life got in the way. I believe that dreams never die, and that dreams come true for those bold enough to dream them boldly. I also believe that we should never stop dreaming, no matter how old we are!

Harlan “Colonel” Sanders franchised his secret chicken recipe for the first time in 1952 at the tender age of 62. At 65, he was traveling alone across the country looking for suitable restaurants, often sleeping in his car. He certainly could have lived on his savings and $105 per month social security checks, but he pursued his dreams of franchising his special chicken recipe.

Our dreams are also often different than we imagine. Remember the dream guy in college, only to find out he wasn’t so dreamy in reality? Or how about the dream jobs that turn out to be nightmares. We must adapt and overcome whatever life throws at us, we must never stop dreaming, for to dream is to live.

Many of our dreams wait just around the corner for us. They watch us succeed and fail, toil and overcome, and want us to reach them if we persevere. Maybe we need to fail and have setbacks to achieve perspective and then keep moving forward for the dreams to be fully realized. In the end, perhaps the pursuit of the dream is, in reality, the dream being fulfilled. So dream big, dream often and never stop following those dreams!