Dreams, despite barriers, give motivation to achieve something that gives meaning to life. In Dan Rather’s They Live the Dream, Curtis Aikens had a dream to become a professional cook. Curtis Aikens was a brave man who experienced going all through high school and five semesters of college without knowing how to read. On the positive side, at the age of twenty-six, Curtis eventually asked for help. Referring to his literacy tutors, he said, “They didn’t change my life. They saved my life” (Rather 45). Aikens encountered the challenge of not knowing how to read, nevertheless worked hard to learn, and to this day, Curtis enjoys his own produce company, is a food columnist, has published three cookbooks to his name, and appears on the Food Network.
