The dream is
starting to fade…
You may
think me mad… or weird or whatever… doesn’t matter. What matters is that
I don’t forget. My eyes are tearing over the prospect that I might
forget.
*********
The Dream
I was in
Ireland (I think). Could have been anywhere… maybe Maine… but it felt
like the Ireland of my dreams. I was wandering around fairly
pointlessly, milling with people that didn’t ‘see it’… and thus, neither did
I. I was walking up and down the old
streets haphazardly looking for something… and not knowing what.
As I passed
an old wharf… like so many you see around Ireland and England (most are not
pretty and picturesque like you imagine, but dirty and dingy looking). But
this one looked fascinating… as there in the harbor were huge rock boulders in
the water… and then part of an even older wharf… and then the sea. It had things
in the harbor area that had rusted and just been left… old abandoned boats
and what looked like a huge rusted slide… and there was junk all around.
A girl
appeared… at least I think it was a girl. She/He was odd looking, kind of strange with
lots of long dark ratty hair… and an old floppy coat. As she passed me, she was
talking to herself out loud and said that she might find those things here…
meaning rocks on the muddy beach??? I don’t know what she meant, but I knew she
was right… and that she belonged here.
I followed…
with much joy (and found even more). She leaped from the boulders across
the slushy muddy beach and bog, as well as the water that lay between us and
just made it to the wharf’s edge. There were a few old folks watching. I looked
at the expanse and thought out loud, ‘I don’t have that much jump in
me’.
Later, I found
myself on the older wharf looking into the deep churning sea and up at the
sky and knew this was what I was looking for. This was it… a
sense of adventure and freedom… and inexplicable wonder bubbled up inside me
and no matter how hard I try, I can’t describe it adequately. I can only thank
God for allowing me to remember it (yes, I had a similar experience
years ago, but the memory has faded).
Now I was on
top of the giant rusted slide looking at my friend on the wharf and mirroring
in her eyes this shared joy. As I looked around me, so many things on the town-side
looked shabby, all but an old painted green building which seemed to glow
with charm. I asked her where she lived and she pointed there… and I
knew it… even as she pointed.
Then, as I
thought of swimming in the sea, I somehow lost hold of the joy… let ‘fear’ creep
in, and the weird island in the water now moved slightly and I saw millions of
tiny pink tentacles in the water… and I was afraid. When our eyes met,
she saw the ‘fear’ and the thought that ‘I’d been betrayed’ in mine. Then, I saw
the ‘No! Stay with me!’ in hers.
I chose
to trust… and jumped in! Immediately I knew that it was alright. The tentacles
(if they existed at all) only helped to lift me and I found myself back
on the wharf with my new friend. She/He
was beaming. We headed towards the green building. Her/His mom(?) was there… so
very happy to see me and I could feel how proud she was that her child had
found someone to share the joy.
And I did.
She/He was not a wild child… but perhaps an angel??... sent to remind me
that the something I’m looking for is still there. It’s real. We
just lose sight of it in our every day lives. But it does exist… and we mustn’t
ever stop looking or be afraid ‘to see’.
Well, that’s
it. When I went to bed that particular night, I hadn't felt so hot. The areas behind my nose and throat were burning… and I figured that either I was coming
down with something or having a sudden allergy attack. I gargled, took a Tylenol, and crept into
bed. When I awoke the next morning, my throat still felt a bit scratchy, but
I lay there keeping my eyes closed trying to hold on to the feeling and
remnants of the dream. I knew it would fade as the day progressed… so finally
pulled myself up to sit and record it.
I know this
is a weird one. But I’m sharing it just the same as it was an important one (to
me). I don’t know if our dreams are there to teach us, to remind us, to comfort,
or if they’re simply a hodge-podge of stuff in our memories (maybe all of
the above). But personally, I think there’s more to them than we know… and
if anyone knows of any research being done (and there must be), I’d love
to read about it. If so, leave a message in your comment or email me.
Thanks for reading
Hugs (virtual),
Rian
I mostly dream in conversations rather than images and some of them are very, very real to me. I fall into the all of the above category where dreams are concerned. They certainly can teach us (if we are open to the lessons, and remind us. And sometimes it is the only way we can process the things which have/are haunting us. Or so I believe.
ReplyDeleteI think you may be right... about the "processing the things that have/are haunting us". I have had dreams that cleared up things for me.
DeleteWow! You really remembered your dream beautifully. I usually forget my dreams pretty quickly with just fleeting images. Yes, I think that was a happy message for you. I'm smiling.
ReplyDeleteKay, I do usually forget a dream quickly too. This one I didn't... but I made an effort to remember it.
DeleteThat was pretty complex & mystical! But I liked your interpretation of it Rian. I think you're good at listening to yourself, I mean you make the effort to be self-aware. I'm truly at a loss when it comes to dreams or their meaning (if any). I went to bed last night watching a video of Molly Shannon (a comedienne from SNL) explaining why she left the show, to build a personal life for herself and my last thoughts before going to sleep were "She's really sweet". Then I turn around and dream I'm at some big angry protest against celebrities?? Why?! It was mean and petty, I hope that isn't me. Ugh I'm rambling! Anyway--I did enjoy your dream and if you learn anything more, I hope you let us know.
ReplyDeleteDug, that's interesting what you said... because even though I'm not a confrontational person, sometimes I do that also in my dreams (and for the smallest thing - something that would never bother me if awake). And I've wondered about that too.
DeleteI know I dream, but I cannot recall them.
ReplyDeleteI know, Joanne. They can slip away pretty quick...
DeleteThat was quite the dream. I"m sure there is a meaning behind it but I wouldn't even try to explain it.
ReplyDeleteAll I know, Mae, was that 'something good' had happened... something I needed to remember or perhaps, be reminded of.
DeleteI think dreams are fascinating and I know that feeling of wanting to hang on to some of them.
ReplyDeleteYes, some you want to hang on to... some, you are glad to forget.
DeleteI have come to the conclusion that dreams are a collection of things we have seen over the past days. I can usually find things in the dream that connect up, even fleeting glances are all stored and they all come together in a hodge podge of dreams.
ReplyDeleteMaybe its a way of the brain unloading.
I don't really know, just my theory.
Have a nice Easter.
Briony
x
I think the 'unloading' is a good theory... or at least sometimes, maybe not always. Maybe sometimes we need to process something and dreaming may be a way to do that.
DeleteThat was an amazing dream! Like a few others who left a comment, I either don't recall my dreams, by and large, or I remember only fleeting images, gone quickly. Some dreams I will recall, and I sometimes will dream I'm in the same "place" that I was in a previous dream. If I'm stressed regarding work, I'll usually dream I'm in a former workplace (where I worked in my early 20s), as that time in my work life was lousy. LOL. I also sometimes will dream that I'm somewhere scenic with my camera, taking stunning landscape shots. That's probably my heart's desire manifesting in sleep! :-)
ReplyDeleteOh, I have returned to the same place many times in my dreams. And yes, I also have dreams of a former workplace - sometimes it's peaceful, sometimes confrontational. Most dreams seem short and many times nonsensical. But your dream with the camera... that's the kind you want.
DeleteI've had dreams that I couldn't forget if I wanted to. They were as real as anything. But usually mine fade quickly and I'm unable to record them. Good job catching this one and sharing it! :-)
ReplyDeleteI really hesitated to share it. But it was one of the more complex ones I've experienced. Thought I might get some outside thoughts. The ones with family or friends that are gone are the best... and they're usually brief, but happy.
DeleteI have the most boring dreams ever. They portray things in everyday life and I never know if it was a dream or real. For example, I will dream I went to the grocery store, what items I picked up, people that I ran into. Then I wake up and I never went to the store. Or I dream that I cleaned the bathroom. It's never anything exciting or out of the ordinary. Maybe I have the most boring life?
ReplyDeleteMiss Merry, I think sometimes dreams may be like that... probably just our mind unloading thoughts for whatever reason.
DeleteDear Rian, thank you for sharing this dream and for sharing, too, the abiding joy that came to you in an earlier dream and has remained with you--I think from reading your posts for a while now--until now when it is reinforced because perhaps you need to cherish it anew.
ReplyDeleteAll I know about dreams is that each of us has our own symbols that mean something to us. And the symbols--people, places, things--in a dream are truly personal to the dreamer. Something or someone represents a quality or emotion or happening or whatever to the dreamer. So, it's impossible for the non-dreamer to whom the dream is being told to say, "this means this and that means that." All within the dream is from the symbolic dictionary of the dreamer.
So, I trust your interpretation that Joy inundated you and brought home. What a gift. Peace.
I agree that dreams are very personal. And I don't expect anyone to interpret what someone else's dream might mean. But I'm curious as to whether serious research has been done concerning dreaming. I know books have been written about dreams and what certain dreams mean, etc. But they are not taken seriously... more like a game. Yet I feel that dreams have more purpose...
DeleteNot familiar with status off dream research, but did enjoy your memories and the awesomeness of your being able to recall it in such detail.
ReplyDeleteI know, LC. For some reason it was important to me to record everything I remembered. (and if I hadn't done it immediately, it would have been gone).
DeleteMy goodness, what an amazing dream. The part where you "found yourself on the older wharf looking into the deep churning sea" gave me chills. Many times I've dreamed of being somewhere where I was afraid and was looking down into deep churning water. I wake up afraid. I don't understand dreams but feel like they mean something.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Henny. I think sometimes they are trying to tell us something... and sometimes it's just a hodge podge of thoughts.
DeleteActually, your sharing this was so vivid, so real. I jumped into the icy water with you...found comfort with you finding what you were after. Dreams are, to me, a jumble of thoughts, memories, maybe even wishes coming true if for only the sake of solace.
ReplyDeleteSometimes my dreams are lucid... and at one time I could actually continue a dream. But I haven't done this in a long time. There have been a few that actually 'taught' me something or at least 'explained' something that had me puzzled. Most are just short visits or a jumble of thoughts.
Delete