The Real Dream

I think one of the main problems that Willy, Raskolnikov and Hamlet suffer from is a preoccupation with self. To elaborate, Raskolnikov is consumed with his theory and the possibility of becoming "great." Hamlet starts out with a motive that is conetered around his father, however in the process becomes callous enough to the people that are living around him that he can kill off Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and Polonious without a second thought. As for Willy, he is similar to Hamlet in that his motives start out somewhat good, considering his desire to provide for his family, however, his need for approval and attachment to his own dignity leads him to crumble in the face of failure. These people exemplify a major downfall with this focus on self: when "yourself" fails, you essentially have noone to turn to except youself, leading down a path of further feelings of unfilfillment.

Another problem I see exemplified in Willy is the failure to pursue a passion. His whole career is based on the projected result (success, being liked) and not at all on the journey along the way, the day-by-day experience of his actual job. When his result fails to materialize as he ages, he can find no joy in his job.

To sum up my thoughts so far, I think that the real dream we should be pursuing consists if 1) finding one's God-given passion and 2) using that passion to serve others and glorify God.

If one has truely found their passion, the thing that God himself has fashioned him for, there exists a measure of security and fullfillment that can be maintained even when life has taken a turn for the worse. Even if one ends up like Willy, with no result to show for his labor, hope can be found in knowing that you haven't wasted your experiences, in knowing that you are therefore free to "try again" without regret. The experiences and memories are still there. We can't be tied to the opinions of the world around us like Willy either, because they are always changing. One's passion in life I think is something more constant, more reliable.

Also tied in with this part of the dream, as well as the next part, is the need for the quality of humility and transparency. Raskolnikov and Willy both lead lives of deception, and can therefore never be at peace. Willy's deception is actually motivated by his absolute attachment to dignity, even when he has essentially lost it all already. Being REAL in our interactions with the people around us is absolutely necessary. It allows for faithfulness, for honesty, and subsequently for the formation of real relationships.

Relationships. I would say they are most important institutions in our lives. The most important relationship in our lives should be the one we have with God, which leads gracefully in to relationship with the people around us. One is the outflow of the other. Authentic relationships, the ones that work the best, I think are the ones based on the concepts of humility and service. In relation to God, I think we have to be able to humbly submit to his will and leading in our life before we can really enjoy true, lasting intimacy with Him, which, in turn, is the only way to find true fulfillment. In that kind of relationship, it becomes our joy to serve Him. :) This kind of humbled, self-less mindset is something that is strikingly absent from the lives of Willy, Raskolnikov and Hamlet. From my own personal experience, I have found that serving others is far more fulfilling in any way that serving my own interests ever could be. I think of service in relation to the people around us as a manifestation of love; going of your way to make someone else's day better, to encourage someone, to help someone with a tedious task. If it is not motivated by love however, these things are empty and meaningless as they become simply another attempt to try to gain approval like Willy did.

After saying all this however, to be completely honest, I think I can sum up the real dream or path to fulfillment in a much simpler way. Ms. Weisman warned us not to be trite, but I honestly think that sometimes the simpler answers are the ones that contain the most meaning, which explain the matter in the best way. How do we set ourselves up to lead a fulfilling life? By basing our existence around CHRIST. Simple as that. The things I've explained above are most definitely a result of living a Christ-centered life, however, I think so often we get caught up in our discussions of the importance of these specifics that we miss the big picture. Maybe this is because looking at the specifics can seem much more manageable, more comfortable. It's easy to say that one should find their passion and be selfless. Most of society would agree with those goals. But basing our existence around Christ is not limited to finding your passion so you can serve others and God. (Listening to myself, I can actually see how those answers seem trite themselves.) Rather, basing your existence around Christ requires complete surrender and submission to his purposes, his will. This will involve decisions about how you spend your time, how you talk, how you act, how you relate to others, how you dress. It will involve the decision to change or not, to be different from the rest of the world around you or not. It will involve deciding whose standards you will live by. This is the stuff that makes us uneasy, because in a lot of these areas in our current lives we are comfortable. However, we ultimately need to realize that Christ is the only way to find true fulfillment. He is our creator, He knows us like noone else does; He made us to be in fellowship with Him. Without that relationship with Him, there can be no lasting true peace or joy in a person's life (and I can testify to this through personal experience!). And in finding meaning in life through Christ, we have the ultimate security; God is the only thing we can know in life that will NEVER change, while EVERYTHING around us will. Also, the approval of other people around us will not matter anymore; only God's approval will - leaving room for a much freer existence. No longer do we try to find our identity in what we do or who we know, but rather in Christ: knowing that you are a child of God, loved and called to be set-apart - that is enough.

"I said to the LORD, 'You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.'" Psalm 16:1 :)))