Famous quote by Picabo Street

"I want kids to have a chance to dream of becoming something like I did in my life, and when you're living in a home that's dysfunctional and unhealthy that way, you don't dream like that"

About this Quote

Picabo Street’s words point to a simple but profound truth: the ability to dream big is not just a personal trait, it’s a function of environment. Aspirations grow where safety, stability, and encouragement exist. When a child can count on care, routines, and belief from adults, the mind has room to imagine, to set distant goals, and to commit to the long practice required to reach them. That kind of dreaming is specific, disciplined, and future-oriented, the kind that fuels an athlete’s training, an artist’s practice, or a scientist’s curiosity.

A dysfunctional home narrows that horizon. Unpredictability, conflict, neglect, or substance abuse pull a child’s attention into constant present-tense vigilance. Scarcity and fear shorten the time horizon; the brain invests in getting through today instead of envisioning tomorrow. Toxic stress can blunt executive function, corrode self-worth, and make long-term goals feel abstract or impossible. In that context, “dreams” may shift from concrete ambitions to vague fantasies of escape. It’s not a lack of talent or desire; it’s that the cognitive and emotional bandwidth needed for audacious goals is consumed by survival.

The message is both empathetic and practical. If society wants more children to pursue big, demanding dreams, like the ones that propelled Street’s career, it must build the conditions that make those dreams plausible. That means stable housing, access to mental health care, and support for parents. It means trauma‑informed schools, safe after‑school spaces, mentorship, and visible role models who show what is possible. It also means refusing to romanticize adversity: while some do triumph over chaos, the odds are unfairly stacked. Restoring a child’s capacity to dream is not about charity but about justice, expanding the circle of who gets to imagine a future and work toward it. Give a child safety and belief, and you give them the permission and power to dream in ways that reshape a life.

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About the Author

Picabo Street This quote is written / told by Picabo Street somewhere between April 3, 1971 and today. She was a famous Athlete from USA. The author also have 26 other quotes.
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