Follow That Dream
Why This Matters
Think about a dream you have. Maybe you want to be a doctor, a cricketer, an artist, an army officer, or to start your own shop. Now think about the older people in your life who love you. When you tell them your big dream, what do they usually say?
Some say “just do it, you can be anything”. Others say “be practical, get a safe job”. Both can feel a little empty. One sounds nice but ignores how hard it really is. The other can crush your hope before you even start.
This lesson is a letter from a mother to her teenage daughter. And the mother does something rare. She does both at once — and does them honestly. She says yes, follow your dream, and in the same breath she says here is exactly what it will cost you, and here is how life itself may change that dream. It is the kind of grown-up, loving advice you wish someone would give you straight. That is why it is worth your time.
The Big Idea
The whole letter rests on one simple message. Hold on to it as you read.
The Big Idea: Follow your dream with your whole heart — but go in with open eyes. Dreams come true not from wishing, but from years of effort, sacrifice and persistence, helped by the people around you. And if life changes your dream along the way, that new dream is no less worth chasing.
Before we go further, here is one piece of background that makes the letter make sense.
The Letter, in Short
Here is what the mother says, step by step.
She begins with a clear “yes”: by all means, follow that dream. Great men and women became great because they had a dream and chased it until it came true. What separates the great from the ordinary is how much effort and sacrifice they put in. To become world-class in any field, she says, you must work at it intensely for at least ten years.
It starts with passion for something, then a strong conviction that you must make it real. Next, count the cost — the years of effort, the money, the sacrifice. If the dream is still “burning in your blood” after all that, then plunge — throw yourself in fully. The road will be uphill most of the way. What keeps you going is knowing you are doing what you love and doing the right thing.
She points out that winners are never alone. At award shows, the winner always thanks a whole network of people who supported them. Behind one winner stands a group of helpers.
Then comes the honest part. For many people, dreams stay just dreams. Almost everyone has wistfully said “I wish I could be this or that” — but most never go beyond wishful thinking. Some trade their dream for safety. For others, circumstances change everything. She gives real examples: people whose dream of college was destroyed by the Japanese invasion in World War II; people who had to leave school early to work and support their siblings.
She promises she is not trying to be a “wet blanket” (a spoiler of excitement). But she wants Ming to think about the years a dream takes. If, after weighing all the obstacles, the “burning conviction” is still there, then go ahead and act.
Finally, she shares a gentle truth from her own life: life itself can change your dreams. A new dream can replace the youthful one and be just as valuable. Reaching it may take longer and involve many more people. Her own example: publishing this very book is a dream she has chased for the last ten years — not the dream of her youth, but one her life changed into. She ends warmly: “I wish at least one of your dreams comes true too. Love, Mum.”
The Text, Explained
📖 Where to read the original: Follow That Dream is a letter by Irene Chua from her book My Daughter, My Friend (1995). It is a recent work and still in copyright, so the full original is not reproduced here — read it in your NCERT “Kaveri” textbook. Below, we walk through the letter part by part, with a short, plain explanation of each part and only brief quotations for commentary.
Let’s go through the letter in the order the mother wrote it.
1. The opening — a clear “yes”. The mother’s very first sentence is “By all means follow that dream.” She does not begin with doubts or warnings. She begins with full support. Then she explains why dreams are worth chasing: great people became great because they chased a dream until it came true. The real difference between the great and the ordinary, she says, is the effort and sacrifice they put in. She even gives a number — about ten years of intense, focused work to reach world-class level in any field. This is her way of saying: a dream is possible, but it is not quick or easy.
2. The recipe — passion, conviction, counting the cost, then plunge. She lays out a clear order. First passion (a deep love for one interest). Then conviction — the feeling that “it is imperative to realise it” (imperative means absolutely necessary). Then a cool-headed step: count the cost in years, money and sacrifice. Only if the dream is “still burning in your blood” after all that should you plunge — throw yourself in completely. She warns the road will be “uphill most of the way”, and that what keeps you going is the knowledge that you are doing what you love and doing the right thing. Notice the honesty: she does not pretend it will be smooth.
3. The support network. She points to the Academy Awards. The winner “always thanks a host of people” who formed their support network. Her point is gentle but important: no one reaches a dream completely alone. “For one winner, there is a group of people who stood by him/her.” So dreams are personal, but they are achieved with help.
4. The honest warning — why most dreams stay dreams. Here the tone turns realistic. “For a lot of people, dreams remain dreams.” Most people only ever wistfully (longingly) say “I wish I could be this or the other” and never act. Some “trade their dream for security” — choose a safe path instead. For others, “circumstances changed their lives.” She gives two real examples: people whose dream of going to Raffles College was ended by the Japanese invasion during World War II; and people who had to leave school to work and support their siblings. These show that sometimes the world, not the person, decides.
5. “Not a wet blanket.” She reassures Ming: “I am not going to put a wet blanket on your dreams.” A wet blanket is someone who spoils others’ excitement. She is not doing that — she is only asking Ming to consider the years a dream takes. Then comes the key line: “if the burning conviction is still coursing through your veins, then go ahead and do something about it.” Encouragement and caution, side by side.
6. The closing — life changes dreams, and her own example. She shares wisdom from her own life: “life itself may change a person’s dreams.” These new hopes are “no less than the original dream of younger days.” Reaching them needs you to “negotiate a path through a maze of hurdles” — find your way through many obstacles. The people in your “dreamscape” (your whole world of dreams) become many more. Her real example: publishing this book is a dream she has chased for ten years — not her youthful dream, but one her life changed into, and she is genuinely excited about it. She closes with love and a wish: “I wish at least one of your dreams comes true too. Love, Mum.”
How the Dream Comes True — the Climb
The mother describes following a dream as a climb up a hill. Each part of the climb has a name, and the picture below puts them in order.
Figure 8.1 makes the order easy to remember. You do not leap straight from a wish to success. You move through passion, conviction, an honest count of the cost, and only then the plunge — followed by a long uphill effort.
Themes
A theme is the main idea a piece of writing is really about — the deeper point under the words. This letter carries a few clear themes. Let’s take them one by one and, more importantly, see why each one matters.
Dreams need effort, not just wishing. This is the heart of the letter. A dream by itself changes nothing. What changes things is years of effort, money and sacrifice. This matters because it is honest: it warns you not to expect success just for wanting it, and it tells you the real price so you are not shocked later.
Persistence and self-belief. The road is uphill, stamina runs out, and obstacles appear. The dream survives only if the “burning conviction” survives. This matters because almost every big goal has a low point where giving up feels easy. Knowing that in advance helps you push through it.
You are not alone — the support network. Behind every winner is a group of people. This matters because it removes a wrong belief — that you must do everything yourself. Accepting help is part of succeeding, not a weakness.
Dreams can change with life — and that’s okay. Circumstances can redirect a dream, and a new dream can be just as worthy. This matters because it frees you from guilt. If your path changes, you have not failed; you have grown.
The web below pulls these themes together.
Figure 8.2 shows that the themes are not scattered — they are woven into a clear order of moves, from warm encouragement at the top to honest caution and a personal example at the end.
Characters & Voice
This is a letter, so there are really just two people in it — and we only ever hear one of them.
The mother (Irene Chua). She is the writer and the only voice we hear. What does she want? She wants her daughter to chase her dream wisely — with full heart but open eyes. Why does she write this way? Because she loves Ming and has lived longer. She has seen dreams come true and seen dreams die, so she gives both the encouragement and the warning. She is warm, honest and a little excited (especially at the end about her own book).
Ming (the daughter). We never read Ming’s own words, but we can guess what she wrote. Because the mother opens with “By all means follow that dream”, Ming must have written to her about a dream she was unsure about — maybe asking, “Should I really go after this?” The whole letter is the mother’s answer.
The diagram below shows the two paths the mother contrasts — the mere dreamer and the real achiever.
Figure 8.3 captures the mother’s sharpest point: the wish is the same for everyone, but only effort and persistence turn it into achievement.
Setting
The “setting” of a letter is simply when and where it was written, and who it is for. This one is dated 19 June 1995 and addressed “Dear Ming”. The references to the Academy Awards, World War II and Raffles College (later the National University of Singapore) suggest a modern, Singapore-connected world.
Why does the setting matter? Because it makes the advice feel real and personal, not like a textbook lesson. A specific date, a real daughter’s name, and real historical examples make you trust that the mother has actually lived through what she is describing. The advice carries weight because it comes from experience, not theory.
Literary Devices
Even a plain, honest letter uses small touches of figurative language to make ideas land. A literary device is a special way of using words for effect. Here are the main ones, each named, explained, and tied to why the mother uses it.
Metaphor — describing one thing as if it were another, to show a likeness. The mother calls the dream “burning in your blood” and “coursing through your veins”. A dream does not literally burn or flow in blood. She uses this to show how alive and powerful a real dream feels inside you — like something physical you cannot ignore.
Metaphor (the climb). “The road may be uphill most of the way” treats the journey to a dream as climbing a hill. A career is not a real road. But “uphill” instantly tells you it is hard and tiring, with effort needed at every step. One word does the work of a whole sentence.
Idiom — a common phrase whose meaning is not literal. “Wet blanket” means a person who spoils excitement; “wishful thinking” means hoping for something without acting. She uses idioms because they are familiar and friendly — they make the letter sound like a real person talking, not a lecture.
Coined / compound word. “Dreamscape” joins “dream” with “-scape” (meaning a scene or view of, as in landscape). It paints the whole world of a dream in one fresh word, and reminds us how many people live inside that world with us.
Let’s see this last device clearly, because it appears in your textbook exercises too.
The word 'dreamscape' is made of two parts. What does each part mean, and what does the whole word mean?
‘Dream’ means a hope or goal. ‘-scape’ means ‘a view or scene of’ (as in landscape = a view of land). So dreamscape means the whole world or scene of someone’s dreams — all the hopes, people and possibilities inside it. The mother uses it to say that as a dream grows, more and more people become part of that world.
The “Why” Behind the Letter
This is the part most notes skip — so let’s slow down and ask why the mother does what she does.
Why start with “yes”? She could have begun with warnings. Instead she opens with full support — “By all means follow that dream.” Why? Because she knows that hearing doubts first can crush a teenager’s courage. By saying yes first, she keeps Ming open to the harder advice that follows. Encouragement comes before caution on purpose.
Why give the honest warning at all, then? If she truly believed in Ming’s dream, why mention failure, “wet blanket” fears, war and dropped-out schooling? Because real love is not blind cheering. She wants Ming to succeed in the real world, where effort and obstacles are unavoidable. Telling the truth about the cost is kinder than pretending it will be easy. That honesty is what makes her advice trustworthy.
Why share her own dream of publishing the book? She does not have to. But ending with her own example does two things. It proves she is not preaching from the outside — she is living this herself. And it shows the deepest truth of the letter: even her dream changed over the years, and the new one is just as precious. She is showing, not just telling.
The picture below shows this balance she keeps all the way through.
Figure 8.4 sums up the mother’s whole approach: she holds encouragement and honest caution in balance, never tipping fully into either.
And the timeline below shows the letter’s gentlest idea — that a dream can change with life.
Figure 8.5 makes the closing idea concrete: a dream that changes has not died. It has grown into something new and equally worthy.
Common Misreadings
Students often take away the wrong lesson from this letter. Here are the slips to avoid.
The mother is loving and supportive, so it is easy to think she only cheers Ming on.
The mother simply tells Ming to chase her dream and promises it will work out.
The letter opens with a warm 'By all means follow that dream', and the loving, encouraging tone makes it sound like pure cheerleading, so a reader remembers the encouragement and forgets the warnings packed in the middle.
She gives balanced advice. Alongside the encouragement she warns honestly about years of effort, money, sacrifice, obstacles, and the fact that many dreams stay just dreams. She encourages and cautions at the same time.
The phrase “wet blanket” confuses many readers about what the mother is doing.
By saying she will not be a 'wet blanket', the mother means she will avoid all warnings and only say positive things.
A wet blanket means a spoiler of excitement, so students assume that 'not being a wet blanket' must mean giving no cautions at all — only happy, positive words.
She means she will not crush Ming's hopes. She still gives plenty of honest caution about cost and obstacles, just in a caring way that supports the dream rather than killing it.
The idea that “life may change a person’s dreams” is often read as something sad.
When the mother says life may change a person's dreams, she is warning that life will defeat your dreams.
Words like 'obstacles', 'maze of hurdles' and 'circumstances changed their lives' sound negative, so a reader assumes a changed dream is a lost or broken one.
She means a dream can evolve into a new one that is 'no less' valuable than the first. Her own example of publishing the book shows a changed dream becoming a real, exciting achievement, not a defeat.
The “ten years” figure is sometimes misunderstood as a strict rule.
The mother is stating a fixed law that every dream takes exactly ten years to achieve.
She gives a clear number — about ten years of intense work to reach world-class level — and numbers feel like exact rules, so students treat it as a precise deadline for any goal.
The 'ten years' is a general idea about how much sustained effort top-level success usually demands. It stresses long, intense commitment, not an exact countdown that fits every dream.
Quick Check
Let’s make sure the main ideas have landed. Try these before moving on.
According to the mother, what mainly separates great people from ordinary people?
Why does the mother say she is 'not going to put a wet blanket' on Ming's dreams?
What does the mother mean when she says 'life itself may change a person's dreams'?
Practice (Exam-style)
Time to write real answers. Attempt each one yourself first, then open the model answer.
Short Answer
What, according to Ming's mother, are the steps in pursuing a dream?
According to the mother, pursuing a dream begins with a passion for a particular interest. This grows into a conviction that you must make it real. Next, you must count the cost — the years of effort, the money, and the sacrifice involved. Only if the dream is still “burning in your blood” after weighing all this should you plunge, that is, throw yourself into it fully. After that comes a long, uphill effort, kept alive by persistence and the knowledge that you are doing what you love.
What differentiates mere dreamers from real achievers?
Both mere dreamers and real achievers start with the same wish — “I wish I could be this or the other”. The difference lies in what they do next. Mere dreamers stop at wishful thinking; they may trade their dream for security or let circumstances decide for them, and they put in no real effort. Achievers, on the other hand, invest years of intense effort, money and sacrifice, keep going even when their stamina runs out, and are supported by a network of people. So the real difference is effort and persistence, not the wish itself.
The letter begins, 'By all means follow that dream.' What do you think Ming must have written to her mother about?
Because the mother opens her reply with full encouragement — “By all means follow that dream” — Ming must have written to her about a dream or ambition she was unsure about. It seems Ming shared a big goal she wanted to pursue, perhaps doubting whether it was practical or worth the effort, and asked for her mother’s opinion. The entire letter is the mother’s warm yet honest answer to that question, telling Ming to go ahead but with open eyes.
Reference to Context
'No, I am not going to put a wet blanket on your dreams, … but you will also have to consider the years you need to chase your dream.' (i) What does 'wet blanket' mean here? (ii) What two attitudes does the mother balance in this line? (iii) What does the word 'but' signal?
(i) A “wet blanket” is an idiom for a person who spoils others’ excitement or discourages them. Here the mother promises she will not crush Ming’s hopes.
(ii) She balances encouragement and caution. She supports the dream fully, yet she also wants Ming to think honestly about the years and effort it will take.
(iii) The word “but” signals the turn from encouragement to honest caution. It joins her warm support with the realistic warning that follows, showing that the two go together in her advice rather than cancelling each other out.
Long Answer
How does Ming's mother balance encouragement with caution in her advice? Support your answer with examples from the letter.
Ming’s mother gives advice that is both warm and honest, never tipping fully into blind hope or into discouragement.
On the encouragement side, she begins with a clear yes — “By all means follow that dream.” She reminds Ming that great people became great by chasing a dream until it came true, and that doing what you love and “the right thing” keeps you going. She insists she will not put a “wet blanket” on Ming’s dreams, and she ends lovingly: “I wish at least one of your dreams comes true too. Love, Mum.”
On the caution side, she is equally honest. She tells Ming that reaching world-class level takes about ten years of intense work, and that the road is “uphill most of the way”. She asks Ming to “count the cost” in effort, money and sacrifice before plunging. She admits that for many people “dreams remain dreams”, giving real examples of those stopped by World War II or by having to leave school to support their families. She also warns that “life itself may change a person’s dreams”.
The balance is the point. She holds encouragement and caution together, like a level scale. This makes her advice both kind and trustworthy — she wants Ming to chase her dream, but to do it wisely, with full knowledge of the cost.
Finally, here is how to structure a question like the one above so your answer scores full marks.
Exam question: 'How does the mother persuade Ming to follow her dream while staying honest about its difficulties?' How should you build the answer?
- Read the question carefully. It has two parts: how she persuades (encourages) and how she stays honest (caution). A good answer must cover both, not just one.
- Plan a short opening line that states the main point: the mother gives balanced advice — she encourages Ming fully while being honest about the cost.
- Give the encouragement evidence: “By all means follow that dream”, great people chase dreams till they come true, doing what you love keeps you going, “I am not going to put a wet blanket on your dreams”, and the loving close.
- Give the honesty/caution evidence: about ten years of intense effort, the “uphill” road, “count the cost” in effort, money and sacrifice, “dreams remain dreams” for many, the WW II and school examples, and “life itself may change a person’s dreams”.
- Write a closing line that ties it together: by holding encouragement and caution in balance, the mother persuades Ming to follow her dream wisely, with open eyes. This balanced structure — point, both kinds of evidence, conclusion — is the full-marks answer.
Summary
After this chapter, you should be able to explain:
- That Follow That Dream is a letter (non-fiction) written by Irene Chua to her daughter Ming on 19 June 1995, sharing life advice.
- The mother’s central message: follow your dream with your whole heart, but go in with open eyes — effort and sacrifice, not wishing, make dreams come true.
- The steps of pursuing a dream: passion → conviction → counting the cost → plunge → a long uphill effort.
- The difference between mere dreamers (who stop at wishful thinking) and achievers (who add effort, persistence and a support network).
- How the mother balances encouragement with honest caution, refusing to be a “wet blanket” while still telling the truth about the cost.
- The gentle idea that life can change a dream, and that a new dream is “no less” worthy than the first — shown by her own dream of publishing the book.
- Key devices and words: the metaphors “burning in your blood” and “uphill road”, the idioms “wet blanket” and “wishful thinking”, and the coined word “dreamscape”.
What’s Next
That’s the end of Kaveri — congratulations on finishing your Class 9 English reader! You’ve travelled through stories, poems and now this warm, honest letter about chasing your own dreams, which is a fitting note to end on. Take the mother’s advice with you: dream big, work hard, and be kind to yourself along the way.
When you’re ready to revise any chapter, head back to Class 9 English.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the summary of 'Follow That Dream' by Irene Chua?
It is a letter a mother, Irene Chua, writes to her teenage daughter Ming on 19 June 1995. She tells Ming to follow her dream but to do it with open eyes. Greatness comes from years of effort, money and sacrifice, not just from wishing. Most people stay mere dreamers; achievers keep going and have people who support them. The mother also warns that life can change a dream over time, and ends by sharing her own dream of publishing the book and wishing at least one of Ming's dreams comes true.
What is the difference between dreamers and achievers in the lesson?
Both start with the same wish — 'I wish I could be this or the other'. A mere dreamer stops at that wishful thinking, trades the dream for safety, or lets circumstances decide. An achiever adds passion, conviction, years of intense effort, money and sacrifice, keeps going when stamina runs out, and is surrounded by a support network. That extra effort and persistence is what turns a wish into a real achievement.
Why does the mother say she will not put a 'wet blanket' on Ming's dreams?
A 'wet blanket' is someone who spoils excitement or discourages others. The mother does not want to crush Ming's hopes. She still encourages the dream fully. But she also wants to be honest about the cost — the years, effort and obstacles — so Ming chases the dream wisely. That is the balance of her letter: warm encouragement plus honest caution.
What does the word 'dreamscape' mean in Follow That Dream?
'Dreamscape' is a compound word where '-scape' means 'a view or scene of', so a dreamscape is the whole world of someone's dream. The mother uses it to say that as a dream grows and changes over the years, the number of people who are part of that dream world — who help you and share it — becomes much larger.
What is the tone of the letter Follow That Dream?
The tone is warm, loving, optimistic and encouraging, but also realistic and honest. The mother cheers Ming on, yet she does not hide the hard truth about effort, sacrifice and changing circumstances. By the end the tone is hopeful and personal, as she shares her own dream and wishes one of Ming's dreams comes true.
What does 'life itself may change a person's dreams' mean?
It means dreams are not fixed; they evolve. Events like war, work or family responsibilities can redirect your path so that your youthful dream gives way to a new one. The mother says these new hopes are 'no less' than the original dream, and her own example — publishing the book, a dream she did not have in her youth — shows this happening in real life.