At Burning Man, I built a Dream Confessional with Nikolai Giefer. In the deep playa, he routed people to come talk to me and I sat with over one hundred people from all over the world. I asked each of them to close their eyes, think of their greatest hope or dream, and when they felt they really had it, to open their eyes and write this hope or dream on a card. Then, we spoke about the things that were in their hearts: fears, joys, weaknesses, aspirations, peace for countries in conflict, all kinds of things. I would ask each person what was in their way of realizing their dream, how they could shift things in their life to make what they wanted possible. Many times, they were the one in their own way. What struck me was that even though each person had something different to say, it was all rooted in humanity, that even though each one of us is so different, we are so much the same.

 

I took all the cards home with me and they now sit in a jar on my desk (complete with playa dust!) Every now and then, I will read the cards and think of the moments I shared with these people, send each of them a little love and hope that they are closer to these hopes and dreams. This project was a dream for me and exceeded all my expectations. #burningman