A better new reality starts with dreaming big

The only thing holding us back from building a better tomorrow is us

“One day soon, man is going to be able to harness incredible energies — maybe even the atom; energies that could ultimately hurl us to other worlds in some sort of spaceship. And the men that reach out into space will be able to find ways to feed the hungry millions of the world and to cure their diseases. They will be able to find a way to give each man hope and a common future … and those are the days worth living for.”

The words above come from an episode of the original 1960s “Star Trek” television series entitled “City On The Edge of Forever.” Spock and Kirk travel into Earth’s past which leads them to a soup kitchen in 1930 New York City run by a social worker named Edith Keeler. She shares her progressive vision of the future with the men at the 21st Street Mission and Kirk falls in love. I won’t reveal anything more. Just know the episode is often cited as one of the best Star Trek episodes of all time.

During this pandemic I have found solace in re-watching the vast universe of Gene Roddenberry’s “Star Trek.” In the series, humanity’s future is positive, filled with hope and endless possibilities.

Original series stars George Takei and Nichelle Nichols who played

Sulu and Uhura inspired countless Asian and African-Americans to take up careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. told Nichols that her presence on the bridge of the Enterprise with her fellow crewmates of all races and genders said to Black people that they belonged there and that there is a positive future waiting for them.

Roddenberry dreamed big. Dreaming big has led to all kinds of positive advancements for humankind. Whether they were advancements in science, technology, human rights, international relations, education, politics and more.

While confined to our homes and quarantined we used variations on the view screens that Kirk and his crew used to speak to aliens in other spaceships to connect with friends and family in real time across our planet.

We now have life-saving vaccines for a disease that started infecting humans only a little over a year ago.

When we see all that humanity is capable of, even or especially, during this worldwide crisis we need to ask what more can we do to create those days that are worth living for that Edith Keeler foresaw.

An end to poverty. An end to war. An end to racism, sexism, homophobia and ableism. Our beautiful planet healed and restored from the ravages of pollution.

Free quality education available to all from daycare to post-secondary.

Universal health, dental and pharmacare for everyone.

The only thing keeping us from achieving these things is us.

Those dreamers who wouldn’t accept the world as it is and were able to imagine something better forged paths for us to follow, so we can make even wider paths for others to join us. Humanity is capable of so many amazing things.

So many of us here in Hamilton and across the globe have been looking out for each other in so many different ways during this very trying time.

What this tells me is that fundamentally it is in our nature as human beings to want to connect rather than to tear each other apart. This pandemic has put the stark disparities of our society on shameful display.

Instead of hoping for things to go back to the way they were this is an opportunity for all of us to create something far better. Leave the world a better one for future generations yet to come.

So they can travel to the stars, explore the galaxy and know that a peaceful Earth is a place they can always be proud to call their home.

Let’s make those big dreams a reality.