Living Is Better Than Dreaming

Photo by Alex Azabache, Unsplash

Elis Regina used to say that living is better than dreaming. But what about when living hurts? Is it still better than our dreams, where we’re protected?

Experiences don’t always surpass our expectations. Sure, sometimes disappointment happens because we foolishly imagine a million perfect scenarios for what’s to come. But sometimes we don’t expect anything special at all—and we still get a bucket of cold water thrown on us.

Other people are a disappointment of their own. They never act the way we want them to. That’s how it is with anyone—spend a little more time with someone and, at some point, disappointment arrives. And it’s fine for people to act however they see fit; the problem is that we keep building too many expectations and end up hurting ourselves.

But we can only be disappointed or surprised—or feel anything at all—by getting out of our own heads and going out to live. Sometimes, it’s true, reality is quite disappointing, but we learn from it. We also learn to value surprises when they appear. If we were surprised all the time by good things, it would stop being a surprise and become the norm. And what do we learn from monotony?

Maybe it’s time to just deal with life as it is, without overthinking. Because we’re going to suffer either way—whether living isolated in our own imagination, or among people, learning and trying new things. Besides, to have better dreams, you have to go out and chase them. So, you see? It’s worth it to stop just dreaming—and live.

• Author: Eduarda L. de Oliveira