The Ship That Sailed My Dreams: A Postcard from Sweden for a Tired Soul

Today, the work did not stop. It is like a river. It flows and flows and never ends. There are emails. So many emails. Beep. Beep. Beep. There are meetings. So many meetings. Talk. Talk. Talk. There are reports. So many reports. Type. Type. Type.

My head feels full. It is full of work things. My eyes are tired. They look at the computer screen all day. The screen is my world. It is a world of boxes, and lines, and words about work. It is not a very fun world.

Sometimes, I close my eyes for one minute. And I dream. I dream of other places. Places with no emails. Places with no meetings. I dream of the sun on my skin. I dream of the wind in my hair. I dream of the sound of the ocean. I dream of travel.

But then, I must open my eyes. And the work is still there. Waiting for me. My body is in the office chair. But my heart wants to be somewhere else. My heart wants to be free.

When I feel like this, I have a secret magic trick. I have a box. A simple brown box. Inside the box are my paper treasures. My postcards. Each postcard is a key. A key that can open a door. A door to another world.

Today, I pick one postcard. Wow. It is a beautiful picture. I see a big, big ship. The ship is made of wood. It looks very old. It looks very strong. It has big white sails. The wind pushes the sails. The ship is moving fast. It makes white foam in the blue water.

And at the front of the ship, there is a lion! The lion is the color of fire. It is red. His hair, his mane, is the color of the sun. It is gold. He looks so brave. He is not scared of the big ocean. He is the king of the ship. His mouth is open. He is shouting a brave lion-shout to the waves. ROAR!

I hold the postcard in my hand. I am in my chair, at my desk, with all my work. But in my mind, I am on that ship. I can feel the ship move up and down, up and down. I can feel the salty spray of the sea on my face. I can hear the wind in the big white sails. I am on an adventure! I am sailing away!

This is a good feeling. It is my little holiday. A five-minute holiday in my mind.

But I want to know more about this brave lion ship. Where is it from? Where is it going? So, I ask my friend, my storyteller, Cik Gem. "Cik Gem, can you tell me the story of this ship? The ship that is taking my dreams across the ocean."

And Cik Gem tells me a wonderful story. A story about a dream that came true.

The name of the ship is the Götheborg of Sweden. The story has two parts. A sad part, and a happy part.

Let's start with the sad part. A long, long, long time ago, in the year 1738, there was a ship just like this one. It was the original ship. The first one. It was a treasure ship! Its job was to sail to a far, far away land called China. The journey was very long and very dangerous. But the ship was brave. It went to China and came back many times.

What treasure did it bring back? It brought back tea. So people in Sweden could drink warm, nice tea. It brought back silk. So people could wear soft, beautiful clothes. It brought back porcelain. Beautiful white and blue cups and plates.

But one day, the ship was coming home. It was very, very close to its home in Sweden. The sailors could see the land. They were happy. "We are home! We are home!" But then, something terrible happened. The ship hit a big rock under the water. CRACK! Slowly, the beautiful treasure ship sank to the bottom of the sea. It was so sad. The ship and its treasure were lost. It slept under the cold water for more than 200 years.

That is the end of the sad part. Now, for the happy part!

Many years later, some people found the old, sleeping ship. They brought some of the old treasure up. And then, they had a crazy, wonderful idea. They said, "This ship was so beautiful. This ship was so important. Let's not let its story end. Let's build it again!"

Can you believe that? They wanted to build a twin brother for the lost ship. It was a very big dream. And it was very, very hard work. They did not use new, modern machines. They used old tools. Hammers, and saws, and ropes. They wanted the new ship to be exactly like the old ship. Thousands of people helped. Some gave money. Some gave their time. They all worked together to make the dream come true.

And they did it! The ship in my postcard is the new ship! The twin brother! The dream that is now real! It is a real, sailing ship. It is not just a picture in a museum. It has sailed all over the world. It even sailed to China, just like its old brother did.

I look at the postcard again. I see the brave lion. I see the big sails. This ship is more than just wood and ropes. It is a dream. It is a promise. It tells me that even if a dream sinks and gets lost, it can come back. It can be built again. With hard work. With patience. With hope.

I think about my job. The work, work, work. And I think about my dream. The dream to travel, travel, travel. Sometimes, my dream feels like the old ship. It feels like it has sunk under all my work. I cannot see it anymore.

But this postcard reminds me. The dream is not gone. It is just sleeping. Maybe one day, I will be able to build my dream again. Maybe one day, I will not just look at postcards. Maybe one day, I will be the one sending the postcards.

This ship, the Götheborg, had a job. Its job was to travel and bring back treasures. My job is here, at my desk. But maybe, my job can be a tool. A tool to help me build my own ship. My own travel dream.

The brave lion on the front of the ship seems to look at me. He says, "Do not give up! Be brave like me! Your adventure is waiting!"

Yes, Mr. Lion. I will try. For now, this postcard is my ship. This desk is my ocean. And this dream is my treasure. Thank you, my friend, for sending me this piece of hope. It is time to get back to work now. But now, my heart feels a little lighter. Because I know that even the biggest dreams can learn to sail again.

Do you also have a dream that feels like it is sleeping? Tell me about it.

Can you believe it? This new ship, the twin brother, really sailed all the way to China and back! It followed the same long and dangerous path as its old brother from hundreds of years ago. It is a real adventure ship!