“A person with big dreams is more powerful than one with all the facts,” – Albert Einstein.
A woman had asked my dad, “You’re opening the seventh cannabis dispensary in town; how will your shop be better than the others?”
“Because it will be.” My dad responded with passion and a sparkle in his eyes.
In 2000, my parents went to Aspen, Colorado with another couple for the millennium. They were in awe of the glorious mountain town and its beauty and shared the same thought: One day, we will move here.
Eleven years later, my parents made their dream a reality and uprooted our family from a suburban home in New Jersey and replanted us in the Rockies of Aspen, Colorado. My dad, who had always been a foodie, pursued another dream: opening a restaurant. I spent the fourth grade watching him and his chef trial-testing recipes in our kitchen. Soon enough, The Meatball Shack had opened, and my dad, who was once Michael, that Jewish guy from Jersey, had transformed into Michael, the authentic Italian who made Meatballs for a living. I spent my middle school years eating at The Meatball Shack every night. At the time, I would have rather eaten out of the dumpster than have had it one more night for dinner, and now I would do almost anything to have it just once more.
The life of a restaurant owner isn’t all meatballs, chicken parmesan, and sunshine. It’s rocky; there is stress and ups and downs. It was a phenomenal experience; however, in 2016, my dad discovered a new dream. He sold his restaurant, built an organic marijuana grow, and opened two dispensaries. For years, I watched him put significant stress on his body: he would wake up at 4 a.m. and not get home until 9 p.m. some nights. He constantly drove from his store in town to his store in Glenwood, which was about 45 minutes away without traffic. He poured his heart and soul into this business. It may have been the seventh dispensary in Aspen, yet it was the best one (ask any Aspen local). My dad exemplified what happens when you pour positive energy and pride into your businesses.
I recently found out his business, Best Day Ever, will be closing. Sometimes, we must let go of an old dream to allow an even more magical one to rise to the surface. Through all of his businesses, my dad’s most important job was being a father. Everything my dad has done – beginning from the moment I was born – has been to give my brother and me a life where we can endlessly dream. My childhood memories consist of my dad getting on the floor to play with me, truly embracing the life of a girl dad, and reading me the entire “Harry Potter” series. Every spare second my dad had was spent with my brother and me. He begged us to watch a show with him in the living room even if he was tired. When my brother told my dad he wanted to build a computer, my dad sat down with him, and together, they accomplished the task. Since I told my dad I loved hiking, he’s hiked up American Lake with me every summer, powering through his back pain. My dad told me about other dreams he has, like skiing until he’s 100-years-old or taking his future grandkids on big family trips. If he’s taught me anything all these years, everything begins with a dream, and if you believe in yourself and have passion, grit, humor, and love, you can one day make those dreams come true.