The Bridge to Terabithia and Dreams

I’m in the middle of watching The Bridge to Terabithia. I just realized that what adults have lost through the urgency and responsibilities of everyday life is the ability to lose oneself to one’s thoughts, dreams, and imagination. An adult does not have the luxury to see what can be but only what is. After a long time of not using it, like any muscle, the imagination atrophies and withers away.
Dreaming has its place. It provides an escape while you're planning it. It provides a goal. It provides a raison d’etre. Medically, the escape provides a time of relaxation. A time for the body to catch up an heal outside the times it has while you sleep. I'm sure that will keep blood pressure down and stress levels low.
What ifs has its place. Its place lies not in looking back and wallowing in regret for things lost. Its place is in the realm of what can be. What ifs are the building blocks in the minds of inventors and visionaries. Those who produce change see the “What if” and make it happen, even if they can only do it little by little, even if it takes an entire lifetime to do.
Adults tell kids to take their heads out of the clouds and stop dreaming. I think, if given the opportunity, I would say dream but not now. Do what you have to do now then dream as soon as you can.