Editorial: The Power of Dreaming

This summer, both of us visited our second home countries for the first time after the pandemic, Téri Mexico City and Aracelis Havana. Returning to familiar landscapes and the embrace of loved ones awakened a renewed sense of belonging, but also a longing that we were forced to push aside during our long separation.

While Téri has lived in Mexico for extended periods of her life, neither of us has truly grown up in our second home country, lived completely within the local reality or received an education there. As a result, we have always associated Mexico and Cuba with notions of holidays, freedom, warmth and love. We have been able to visit briefly, but our stays have always felt too short. We've seen our loved ones far too rarely, and back in Finland we’ve always dreamed of returning as soon as possible.

Only a few still had a twinkle in their eye. Those who held onto hope stood out from the rest. They still dreamed and imagined a better future; they could perhaps envision a utopia beyond their country and their lives.

These images were filled with lots of utopian elements, heightened positive emotions and dreams. Because our understanding of the local reality was incomplete, we filled in the gaps with our imaginations. There was a magical glow of enchantment, fantasy and love surrounding our travels, the lands and their people. The scattered nature of harsh realities and the lack of the mundane allowed us to associate only positive experiences with our second homelands.

During this visit, however, traces of the pandemic and years of isolation were extremely visible, especially in Cuba. The entire country seemed to have lost its hope. Food, money and medicine were sparse and unlike before, hope for a better future seemed to have run dry as well. Everyone was tired. The once sunny people had become grey and hollow. Only a few still had a twinkle in their eye. Those who held onto hope stood out from the rest. They still dreamed and imagined a better future; they could perhaps envision a utopia beyond their country and their lives. The contrast was stark. It made us think about the power of dreaming and envisioning utopias.

Dreaming is a privilege, one that can be difficult to hold onto when facing the prevalent realities of a capitalist world. On the other hand, it is impossible to completely steal a person's ability to dream and fantasize. It’s important to hold on to dreams especially when it seems most difficult and to cultivate utopias even when they seem distant.

Dreams, art and play could be our only ways to escape the anxiety caused by injustice.

In the current political climate, the future of many marginalized groups appears bleak also in Finland. As a result, we too may need escapism on a completely new level when reality feels too heavy. Immersing ourselves in fantasy worlds can feel particularly important for those of us who belong to minorities and constantly experience discrimination and racism in our everyday lives. Dreams, art and play could be our only ways to escape the anxiety caused by injustice.

Play and imagination are innate to children. A lonely child creates imaginary friends and playing together can take a whole group into new worlds for hours. While making this issue, we wondered how adults could make more use of play and imagination to support their own well-being.