“The remains of dead dreams” found in Japanese garbage are too painfully real

What happens to a dream deferred?

We all have dreams in life. Some of us want to grow up to have certain jobs, or accomplish certain things, or live surrounded by many, many dogs.

And in order to achieve those dreams, what better first step is there than buying a book or two? They’re a great introduction to whatever your dream may be, whether it’s learning a language, learning how to code, learning how to draw, or anything else.

Although, as Japanese Twitter user @SUPERMASASHIGE showed, those books purchased at the start of the path toward a dream can also have a more depressing side:

▼ “While out for a run I saw ‘the remains of dead dreams’ that somebody put out for recycling and it hit me in the feels.”

ランニングしてたら誰かの"夢の跡"が落ちててグッと来た pic.twitter.com/aGecB6JyIL

— 俺はこれで戦争を止めてみせる。 (@SUPERMASASHIGE) August 19, 2021

From left to right, the small white book is “A Book for People Who Want to Write a Novel,” the top yellow book is “Manga Illustration Course: Color Techniques 1,” and the small white book below that is “Inspirational Words to Make Every Day More Enjoyable.”

If that isn’t the holy trifecta of someone who had, at some point, been looking to change their life and follow a dream, then I don’t know what is.

Of course, the fact that they’re all bound up in string and put out for recycling probably only means one thing: that dream of theirs died. Whether it was something they’d worked on for years, or maybe just a little while, those books were no longer needed and it was time to take out the trash.

Japanese netizens tried to come up with some alternative theories:

“Maybe they’ve already accomplished their dream?”
“Perhaps their dream came true and they don’t need them anymore.”
“Or maybe they found a new dream to purse instead.”
“Hmm, I wonder if they were the ones who got rid of them, or if it was their parents.”
“When I was 15 I found a dojin magazine put out for recycling, and that’s what got me into going to dojin events.”
“Oh no. This is painful to look at.”
“Oof. This hits close to home for me.”
“I can only imagine the tears as they wrapped them up and put them out.”

While we will never know the specific situation behind these books in particular, trying out something you’re interested in, or that was a dream of yours when you were younger, but then discovering that you’re actually not interested in it after all is fairly common.

As someone who used to run writing workshops, there were many people who came once or twice with an idea for a novel, then found out how difficult it was to actually write and publish it, and gained a newfound appreciation for their regular lives and jobs. That’s not so much “giving up” as it is “giving a try” at something, and then moving on, without any regrets.

Although if you are set on pursuing a passion all the way to the end, be sure to finish your bowl at the ramen shop that makes dreams come true for your best chance at success!

Source: Twitter/@SUPERMASASHIGE via My Game News Flash
Top image: Twitter/@SUPERMASASHIGE
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