Exerpt from The Dream Giver

Day after Day, Ordinary showed up at his Usual Job. But while he worked, he thought about his Dream. He thought about how wonderful it would be to do what he loved to do instead of just dreaming about it.

Ordinary's longing for his big Dream grew and grew until finally he realized that he'd never be happy unless he could pursue it. Why didn't the Dream Giver make it possible?

If the Dream Giver didn't, how could Ordinary ever leave Familiar? He had payments and expenses. He had regular duties. A lot of Nobodies counted on him for a lot of things.Ordinary felt completely stuck. Time passed, but nothing changed.

He began to hate his Usual Job. This isn't what I was made to do, he'd say to himself. I just know it!

After a while, he began to worry that maybe he hadn't received a big Dream after all. Maybe he'd just made it all up.

And he grew sadder by the day.

One evening after work, Ordinary went to this Parents' to watch the box. But their box was broken, so the house was very quiet. It was even more quiet because his Mother was out shopping at Familiar Foods.

In the quietness, Ordinary started to think about his Dream again. He looked over at his Father sitting in his recliner, staring at the single page of Nobody's News. Maybe HE could help.

"Father", said Ordinary, "I'm growing sadder by the day. I don't like my Usual Job anymore. In fact, I think I hate it."Father looked up. "That's terrible!" he said. "What happened?"

Before he could stop himself, Ordinary started talking about the Dream Giver, and about his Big Dream. "I was made to be a Somebody and achieve Great Things!" he said. And then he told his Father the Name of his Dream. As he spoke, his voice trembled. He was sure that his Father would laugh or call him a fool.

But his Father didn't. "I'm not surprised to hear you say these things," he said.

"You're not?" said Ordinary.

"No," his Father said. "You've had that Dream ever since you were little. Don't you remember? You used to build that same dream with sticks and mud in front of this very house.

"Then Ordinary did remember. He'd always had this Dream! It was what he'd always wanted to do, and what he'd always thought he'd be good at doing. His eyes filled with tears.

"Father," he said. "I think I was born to do this."

Ordinary and his Father sat together quietly. His Father seemed to be remembering something, too. After a while he asked, "When you woke up to your Big Dream, Son, did you happen to find... a feather?"

Ordinary was shocked. "How did you know?" he asked.

"A long time ago, I woke up to a Dream, too." his Father said. "And it came with a long white feather. It was a wonderful Dream. I kept the feather on my windowsill while I waited for a chance to pursue it. I waited and waited. But it never seemed possible... One day I noticed the feather had turned to dust."

Of all the sad words Ordinary had ever heard, these were the saddest. Before he left that night, his Father hugged him.

"Don't make the same mistake I did, Son," he said. "You don't have to stay a Nobody. You can be a Dreamer!"

When Ordinary got home, he went straight to the window and picked up the long white feather. He turned it over carefully in his hands. He thought about his Father and the Dream he'd left behind.

Then he had a surprising idea. Could it be that maybe the Dream Giver gave every Nobody a Dream, but only some embraced their dreams? And even fewer pursued them?

The more he thought about it, the more he thought it had to be true.

One thing Ordinary did know for sure: He didn't want to repeat his Father's mistake. He wouldn't waste another day waiting for his Dream to seem possible. He would find a way to pursue it.

Time passed. Ordinary worked hard on his plan to begin his Dream. He made hard choices. He made difficult changes. He even made big sacrifices.

Finally, one morning, he was ready.

Ordinary ran all the way to his Usual Job, his Dream pounding hard in his chest. As soon as he saw Best Friend, Ordinary blurted out the news: "That Big Dream I told you about-- I've decided to pursue it!"

Best Friend looked concerned. "You know as well as I do that Nobdodies who pursue their Dreams leave Familiar," he said. "They set off like fools into the Unknown, in search of a place where--"

"Yes, yes. I know," Ordinary broke in, "and I can't wait to get started!"

"But Ordinary, that journey is anything but sensible or safe. Why leave Familar? It's so comfortable here. And besides, you've always lived here."

"I've thought about all that, too," said Ordinary. "But my Big Dream is too important and too wonderful to miss."

Best friend shook his head. "So you're going to become a Dreamer," he said.

"I am a Dreamer!" answered Ordinary. "Today I'm going to tell my Boss that I'm leaving my Usual Job. Tomorrow I will begin my journey. Hey, Best Friend," added Ordinary eagerly, "you can have my recliner and my box!"

And with that, Ordinary walked away, humming a tune that he'd never heard before.