Sometimes idealism can get a bad rap. That it means just being positive all the time— or worse, being naïve. But idealism is incredibly practical. It’s about seeing things as they are, imagining things as they could be, and taking real and practical steps to turn what is into what could and should be.

( Michael Brown, CEO and Co-Founder of City Year in his 2008 commencement address at the University of New Hampshire. (via cityyear) )