Years ago after the 2012 London Olympic Games, I watched a video where former U.S. Women's National Soccer Team player Julie Foudy interviewed current soccer star, Alex Morgan. Morgan ended the video with a quote that I still think about to this day, "Dream big because dreams do happen." These six words that Morgan spoke in that interview remain true today.

It's important to dream and to dream big. One thing that I've found is as you get older, if you still hold on to a specific dream, it could turn into a reality if it's meant to be. My dream has been the same since I was young. I've always wanted to be a writer. As I got older, my dream became more defined and more specific and detailed. Quite frankly, my dream is still being fine-tuned as I gain more experience and learn about the profession of journalism. It's crazy to think that years ago, I let other people's opinion make me doubt my dream.

For those who know me, it's never been a secret that I wanted to be a journalist. What caught me off guard was when people would tell me that "it's too hard, you need a backup plan." Or, "that field is so competitive, that's going to be hard for you." I remember pausing and taking their opinion, and it bothered me. So I felt like I needed to prove people wrong, so I wrote with a chip on my shoulder. That didn’t work for me, so I sat down and meditated and prayed. Here's what came out of it all.

In society, they're always going to be people who doubt dreams. It's been this way since the beginning of time. The Bible tells us that Joseph's own brothers doubted the dream that he shared with them. But in the end, Joseph's dream ended up leading him to his destiny, which I feel is the same for every human on this planet. If our dreams are sincere and they're truly meant to be our destiny, then it doesn't matter what anyone says or think! You'll run into people who you think will support your dream, but they're only around to do the opposite. They can't stop anyone from being what and who they're meant to be.

Here's another thing that I learned – you can't tell everyone your dream. This might seem like it contradicts what I just said about not caring what anyone says about your dream, but there is a difference. I think in life, you meet people along the way who are dream enhancers and dream crushers. I think it's important to use discernment to find the dream enhancers, rather than the dream crusher. A dream enhancer will help people reach their goal and fulfill their dream. A dream crusher will drain people's energy and tell them why their dream is too hard and how they need to change course. People who hang around dream crushers for too long will fall in line with their thinking and lose their dream.

Dreams are important and they matter. Never be afraid to dream and to dream big. Because one day, when you wake up, that dream will become a reality.