( c)All rights reserved by the author
Instagram : rajatchandrasarmah5
Email: rajatchandrasarmah@gmail.com
Dreams are what give life meaning. They push us forward, make us strive for something beyond the ordinary. But what happens when the pursuit of a dream comes at a cost too great to bear?
I have seen this struggle up close.
A close friend of mine, a devoted father, spent his entire life working toward a single purpose—to give his son the future he never had. From the moment the child was born, every decision revolved around him. The best schools, the best coaching, the best opportunities—no expense was too great, no sacrifice too small.
And the boy had a dream too. He wanted to study abroad, to make a name for himself in a world far removed from the quiet life his parents had known. His father embraced this dream as his own. He worked overtime, took out loans, cut down on every personal expense imaginable. Family vacations became a thing of the past. Even medical checkups were postponed. He aged before his time, his health suffering in silence, his only comfort being the thought that one day, his son would achieve greatness.
The day finally came. The boy left for his dream university. The father stood at the airport, his eyes filled with both pride and exhaustion. Months passed, then years. The boy flourished in his new world, his visits home growing less frequent. Life moved on, but the sacrifices remained. The father, now much older, had given away his best years. The loans still needed repayment, the body still bore the burden of overwork.
One evening, he sat with me and asked, almost as if speaking to himself, “Did I do the right thing? Was it worth it?”
And I didn’t know what to say.
Is it right for a parent to give up everything for a child’s dream, even at the cost of their own well-being? Should there be a limit to sacrifice, or is true love defined by boundless giving?
What do you think? Should dreams always come first, no matter the cost? Or should there be a balance between ambition and the life that is slipping away in its pursuit?
Rajat Chandra Sarmah
Guwahati , Assam , India
08/02/2025
musingofrajat.wordpress.com 