Susan Boyle was a musical phenomenon in 2009. She appeared on the British television show Britain’s Got Talent on April 11, 2009. In her debut, she sang “I Dreamed a Dream,” from the musical "Les Miserables". On November 23, 2009, she released an album by that title. The album became the second biggest-selling album of 2009 in the United States, selling 3.1 million copies. The title song on that album, “I Dreamed a Dream,” appealed to a lot of folks, not only because of Boyle’s voice, but also because it touched the sadness that often marks the lives of many in our day.
The song was sung by Fantine in the musical version of Victor Hugo’s "Les Miserables". Fantine experienced multiple heartaches. Her heart was broken by a man that she loved, and she was left to deal with poverty and difficulty. She sang:
“I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living
I dreamed that love would never die
I dreamed that God would be forgiving
Then I was young and unafraid
And dreams were made and used and wasted
There was no ransom to be paid
No song unsung, no wine untasted”
But after life’s bitter experiences, she sang:
“I had a dream my life would be
So different from this hell I’m living
So different now from what it seemed
Now life has killed the dream I dreamed”
Part of the appeal of the song is due to the fact that so many people have had similar experiences—they have experienced broken dreams. The constant parade of broken dreams takes its toll on the human spirit. Music has a way of capturing the sadness of broken dreams.
James Taylor’s first big hit was “Fire and Rain.” It too is about the pain of being unlucky in love. In the song, there are these lines:
“Been walking my mind to an easy time
My back turned towards the sun
Lord knows when the cold wind blows
It’ll turn your head around
Well, there’s hours of time on the telephone line
To talk about things to come
Sweet dreams and flying machines in pieces on the ground”
Taylor’s original band was named “Flying Machine.” He had high hopes for that group, but it did not work out. In his life “sweet dreams and flying machines lay in pieces on the ground.”
It’s been said that dreams are the feathers on which we fly. They give us hope and purpose. We would do well to let the Lord shape our dreams. Inevitably, however some dreams will die. When they die, God can give us grace to deal with our broken dreams. He has promised that His grace is sufficient for us. He can give us grace to cope with the broken dreams in our lives.
