Encourage Their Dreams: Helping Children Imagine a Brighter Future

Since I can remember, I have been a dreamer. From a very young age, I clung to my dreams and drew strength from them to continue facing challenges and persevering through difficulties that were abundant.

My late mother always encouraged me to weave dreams—dreams where I succeed in overcoming physical challenges, realize my potential, and achieve remarkable accomplishments, achievements that I knew for certain were only possible in my dreams.

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As a child, I suffered greatly from the hurtful words of others. Among all the painful memories, I primarily recall the years I spent hospitalized at the "San Simon" facility. A small, disabled child, unable to speak, far away from home and family. A lonely, sad child longing for connection. A child who envied his roommates and friends, who had grandparents and other relatives visiting them, who had guests bringing them treats and presents, who had younger siblings drawing pictures for them and showing them new tricks— they had it all! And I... I had just a very brief visit once a week. True, even as a child, I knew my mother came to each visit with a selflessness that was beyond description, enduring a grueling journey of nine hours, but the awareness, as solid as it was, did little to fill the empty week of a five-year-old.

As if my own pain wasn’t enough, in those long days and nights of solitude, I was repeatedly hurt by the words of others. A small portion of the visitors at the facility would often comment loudly on the fact that I was always alone, insinuating that I was, presumably, an orphan or a child that my parents didn’t want, etc. It’s hard to describe how much these statements wounded my heart, but I can attest that they were more painful than all the other physical and emotional torments I faced during those years!

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I remember when I was about ten years old, my mother asked me: "Ahar'la, what do you want to do when you grow up?" I replied, "I want to teach people just how careful they need to be with their words. To explain to them how words can hurt and wound, how they can bury children under blankets for endless periods, and what names they can inflict on a child's spirit. On the flip side, I want them to know just how powerful words can be when used correctly. How they can build worlds, shape individuals, and empower them, just like your words do, Mom." My mother looked at me with a smile and said, "I’m sure you can do that, Ahar'la. There’s nothing stopping you." Just imagine the scene: a small child, still half-paralyzed, lying in bed, and his mother tells him that when he grows up, nothing will stand in his way from becoming a lecturer and teaching people about the power of words. It’s simply hard to fathom.

But my mother encouraged me to dream. To dream and not to let go. To dream and believe that my dream could come true.

And it truly did come true. I was fortunate to establish the "Worldwide Living Heart Initiative," which does magnificent work in precisely this regard; on one hand, it disseminates awareness of the concept of guarding one's speech in various ways, and on the other hand, it engages intensively in the commandments concerning interpersonal relations.

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A few years later, when I was unable to finish the blessings of the Torah during my bar mitzvah, and in front of a crowd, I fled from the synagogue and hid in the restroom until all the worshippers had gone home after prayer, my dream of teaching others about the destructive—and on the other hand, constructive—power of language grew stronger. But then a new facet was added. I dreamed that when I grew up, I would travel from city to city and at every place I arrived, I would hold gatherings for children and explain to them how painful it is for a child when his weaknesses are mocked, and his illness or any other challenges he faces are ridiculed. I dreamed that my explanations would reach children’s hearts so deeply that they would understand how much hurtful words could damage a child’s personality and soul.

I dreamed and I achieved. True, I don’t travel from city to city and gather children around me, but I found another way to speak with them about the topic, and in my eyes, it’s no less effective—comic books. The "Ahar'la" series that I write for children explains exactly these issues. It wonderfully fulfills this childhood dream!

I wish so much that my mother, who always believed so wholeheartedly in my ability to fulfill my dreams, could see the fruits of her faith. Although my mother is no longer with us, her belief continues to accompany me because the belief of parents in their children lasts a lifetime. So I want to take this opportunity to address you, dear parents, with a request: For the sake of your children, encourage their dreams, help them paint dreams of a brighter future, and give them the strength to face challenges.