The Orange Bowl in all its philosophical glory

today i was watching the award ceremony for the Orange Bowl Game. Stanford won a huge victory and they were awarding the MVP, Andrew Luck. (btw, i'm not a big BCS fan or anything, it was just on while i was at the gym) Anyway, as they were all clamoring over this boy, Andrew, I thought about how long it's been since i had one of those life-defining moments. and not just me, but anyone...when was the last time that you had a moment that would forever change your life. This boy's career is about to skyrocket and he still has 2 more years of college left...will he live to the hype? will he get hurt and look back to today as the best day in his life?
I think one of my biggest concerns in life is that this is it - i peaked back in high school or college. I received an award and looked out to the crowd, confident that my life would be more than just a middle of the road existence - that i would rock every moment of life. And its not that i'm saying my life is mediocre - it's not. It's a damn good life but sometimes i wonder if it's too small of a life... did the dreams of grandiose just die along the way or did i become smarter as an adult?

I once read something from one of my fave authors - Paulo Coehlo. He wrote, "the third symptom of the passing of our dreams is peace...we put aside the fantasies of our youth, and we seek personal and professional achievement. We are surprised when people our age say that they still want this or that out of life. But really, deep in our hearts, we know that what has happened is that we have renounced the battle for our dreams – we have refused to fight the Good Fight."
I've been somewhat conflicted since i read this because is having a peaceful life really just giving up? Did we trade in our great dreams of being an NFL star, a famous author, an Oscar winning actress along the way? Will this boy, Andrew Luke, wake up one day not a football star but a very successful bank manager? Will his life be good but will he see it as a failure to live up to what he could have been?

I want to ensure that my life is one i can look back w/out regret. And for the most part, i think it is...but then what has been the last thing of GREATNESS that i've done? Something that is out of the norm? And i guess, it also becomes a matter of subjectiveness....but i worry- did i let some of my dreams die w/out ever mourning their death?