KEEP YOUR DREAM.....

I read this story and wanted you to read and get inspired
I have a friend named Monty Roberts who owns a horse ranch in San Ysidro. He has let me use
his house to put on fund-raising events to raise money for youth at risk programs.
The last time I was there he introduced me by saying, “I want to tell you why I let Jack use my
horse. It all goes back to a story about a young man who was the son of an itinerant horse
trainer who would go from stable to stable, race track to race track, farm to farm and ranch to
ranch, training horses. As a result, the boy’s high school career was continually interrupted.
When he was a senior, he was asked to write a paper about what he wanted to be and do when
he grew up.
“That night he wrote a seven-page paper describing his goal of someday owning a horse
ranch. He wrote about his dream in great detail and he even drew a diagram of a 200-acre
ranch, showing the location of all the buildings, the stables and the track. Then he drew a
detailed floor plan for a 4,000-square-foot house that would sit on a 200-acre dream ranch.
“He put a great deal of his heart into the project and the next day he handed it in to his
teacher. Two days later he received his paper back. On the front page was a large red F with a
note that read, `See me after class.’
“The boy with the dream went to see the teacher after class and asked, `Why did I receive an
F?’
“The teacher said, `This is an unrealistic dream for a young boy like you. You have no money.
You come from an itinerant family. You have no resources. Owning a horse ranch requires a lot
of money. You have to buy the land. You have to pay for the original breeding stock and later
you’ll have to pay large stud fees. There’s no way you could ever do it.’ Then the teacher
added, `If you will rewrite this paper with a more realistic goal, I will reconsider your grade.’
“The boy went home and thought about it long and hard. He asked his father what he should
do. His father said, `Look, son, you have to make up your own mind on this. However, I think
it is a very important decision for you.’ “Finally, after sitting with it for a week, the boy turned
in the same paper, making no changes at all.
He stated, “You can keep the F and I’ll keep my dream.”
Monty then turned to the assembled group and said, “I tell you this story because you are
sitting in my 4,000-square-foot house in the middle of my 200-acre horse ranch. I still have
that school paper framed over the fireplace.” He added, “The best part of the story is that two
summers ago that same schoolteacher brought 30 kids to camp out on my ranch for a week.”
When the teacher was leaving, he said, “Look, Monty, I can tell you this now. When I was your
teacher, I was something of a dream stealer. During those years I stole a lot of kids’ dreams.
Fortunately you had enough gumption not to give up on yours.”
“Don’t let anyone steal your dreams. Follow your heart, no matter what.”