When I was young, my mother used to say, “I want to live in a house beside the road and be a friend. That’s all I want.”
 
It seemed too small a dream. 
 
I dreamed of being the President or a priest or Joel Osteen—someone who could change the world or at least leave a big mark on it. 
 
But none of my adolescent dreams came true. Instead, I chose an ordinary life. I became a husband, a father, and a lawyer.
 
Somewhere between raising a family and earning daily bread, life became my teacher. I realized I wasn’t meant to be the President, a priest or another Joel Osteen. Those jobs were taken. Instead, I was me—and what I have, what each of us has—is a voice. 
 
Two vocal cords that resonate with words. Words that flow from the heart, that spill onto blank pages. Words that flow from books written by others. Words with the power to inspire, transform, and encourage—so others can find their voice too. 
 
Each of us have been given—a voice. Vocal cords that can resonate with words of love or hate, wisdom or foolishness, encouragement or despair. A voice that lets us choose with the words we speak to ourselves and others the life we want to live.  
 
Over the years I’ve let go of my false dreams as my ego screamed “No!” Because one day someone spoke, “You’re a writer.” And I believed him. I said, “Yes.” And now I write because it makes me feel whole. It helps me make sense of the world and hopefully inspires others. 
 
You have a voice. 
Can you have faith in it and in God? 
Can you embrace your voice, allow it to lovingly empower you and others? 
And live beside the road and be a friend?
 
 
—brian j plachta
brianplachta.net