Impossible Dream - A Poem of Simplicity

 

Impossible Dream

A Poem of Simplicity 

I dreamed a dream
One that could never become true.

And once I saw it — in the light of day —
I knew something was missing,
not just in my life,
But somewhere deep inside of me.

I reached for it anyway,
A desperate hope,
knowing it would slip through,
for the dream is already out of reach.

Still I reached.
Still I tried.

Knowing it was beyond me,
But the hope was there,
Silly as that might seem to some.

I would be forever reaching —
This much I knew.

Yet the trying, the striving,
Might bring something new.

Not the dream itself,
But something close.

Not the same, but the same,
In ways I can’t explain.

You’d have to be me to understand.

For the dream is mine alone.
Unreachable, yes.
But mine just the same.

Always reaching.
Always dreaming.
Always hoping.
Never gaining.

And maybe that’s okay too.

If you were me,
You’d probably try too —
For my impossible dream.

Copyright September 2025 M. W. Van Dyke
All Rights Reserved

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Author’s Note

Impossible Dream – A Poem of Simplicity

I don’t usually explain my poetry. But this time, I’ll offer a few thoughts — not to define the meaning, but to suggest the shape.

This poem is written in first-person, not to tell my story, but to invite yours. Each reader brings their own reach, their own dream, and their own distance. The voice is deliberately ageless — no sage wisdom, no youthful longing. What remains are the innate things: hope, belief, and determination.

All dreams are impossible dreams. That’s what makes them dreams. When we reach for them, when we make them real, they change. They are no longer dreams, and no longer impossible. They are the same, but not the same. And only we know how far we reached.

This poem isn’t about triumph. It’s about the motion of trying — how even unreachable dreams leave a trace. Whether you're young and just beginning to reach, or older and still reaching, the dream remains yours. And maybe that’s enough.

— M. W. Van Dyke

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