R. Norris Williams: US National Champ and Titanic Survivor

Note: Though some version of each dream below might be dreamed by anyone in America, each dream is based on the life of R. Norris Williams.

He lived in a country where dreams are exchanged, where anyone might dream another’s reality. One night a dream is an acceptance letter from Harvard. One night Ben Franklin appears as a relative. He talks all night: How to be successful. How to be creative. How to steal time from work. One night you hit tennis balls so hard and close to the lines, your opponent can barely move. One night you’re the best in college. One night you’re the best in the world. You swim for hours in water as cold as ice. You watch for death, or death watches you. A surgeon says he must amputate your legs. He comes closer and closer, speaks louder and louder. All night you repeat the same seven words: “I will need these legs some day.” Some nights he carries a saw. Some nights the saw starts cutting away.

For more on R. Norris Williams, see his page from the International Hall of Fame.

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