As baseball season begins with the early morning metal twang of a ball splitting the air, the blue moon seems to gaze after the moving vision of teens swinging for a dream.

The coaches have exercise, game training and nutrition rolled out in steps to build the best teams. The athletes all have visions as they break through the crisp Rocky Mountain spring air on their track run.

Students in various programs like sports medicine, computer programming, humanities, education or research have their goals in mind because of the vision they have of discovering a new story, a new cure, or a new method of inspiring learners. Steps for success are first laid out in degree program requirements and then they see the cusp of their new lives emerging. Prospective careers can be the renewal of our Vision as we adapt and add on to the dream.

But sometimes in our lives, holding the vision close to our jersey isn’t always as keen. We may find the call of the wild too much to resist. We might be side tracked by addictions or obsessions. Still, refocusing and trying to stick to the plan brings benefits to be celebrated. Those who graduate can be proud of checking off the boxes and following their hearts’ visions. 

A visionary doesn’t try once and decide to be done; but a dreamer finds continuous hope in adjusting goals as circumstances change.

Visionaries are needed in our society. It’s important to recognize these souls because they remind us of our humanity. I’m reminded that Jesus was a visionary; his disciples saw the compassion he had for others. So they followed him. We’ve had visionaries in our society. Oprah, Steve Jobs, Bill and Melinda Gates are just a few we’ve heard of lately.

Each of us can also be a visionary; we can build our visions for our lives, for our communities, and for our nation. In seeing what their future can hold, some students have returned to get a GED and further education or training in order to provide for their families, too. Becoming a visionary is as easy as setting goals for the next five years, then 10 years and so on. We can build community gardens, dog parks, and adapting laws to expand the efficacy of marijuana to treat cancers or stem cell research to heal knees to Parkinson’s. 

Even if we have little financial resources, we can still hold visions. Home ownership can be a dream and through programs at the USDA, we can find steps to home ownership. Local groups like Habitat for Humanity, Christian Community Services Project, and Energy Resource Center can assist in making such goals realized.

We must vote to be true visionaries because a forward thinking human will also engage community. Being political can be visionary and is not a bad thing; being tuned in to the issues that impact people is a notion of politics. From old English and Greek, the word “politics” means citizen, city. So we must engage in conversation and negotiation in order to solve problems looming over our democracy. 

Like former President Jimmy Carter said this week, I’m hopeful that the American dream will morph into collaborative goals that gathers handshakes across the aisles. Individually, we can continue our vision of the U.S. as a welcoming nation and a leader in human development even as we root for the local baseball team this week.

--Nelda Curtiss is a retired college professor who enjoys writing and fine arts. Contact her at [email protected]