Dream A Little Dream of Me 



Robert M. Pirsig wrote in his novel, Lila, that one of his characters had "...come to think of dreams as Dynamic perceptions of reality. They were suppressed and filtered out of consciousness by conventional patterns of static social and intellectual order but they revealed a primary truth: a value truth. The static patterns of the dreams were false but the underlying values that produced the patterns were true. In static reality there is no octopus coming to squeeze us to death, no giant that is going to devour us and digest us and turn us into a part of its own body so that it can grow stronger and stronger while we are dissolved and lost into nothingness. But in Dynamic reality?"

The Dynamic reality of our dreams is made possible by the static patterns which serve our consciousness. During three nights this past week three unusual dreams were experienced by myself, my wife, and our son. I dreamed that upon leaving a building in a small town business area that one of the buildings had been painted bright pink. This had been done in the short time I had been inside. I was surprised by the brilliant color. Then as I walked down the street other buildings would suddenly turn bright pink. Remember the expression "pretty in pink" which was a complimentary observation? My buildings were all pretty. But the pattern underlying their sudden appearance was "change" and in my dream I readily accepted the change with no concern that it was taking place. I certainly did not question why or how the change was occurring. There was simple acceptance and therefore a willingness to experience that change.

During the next night my wife, Diana, dreamed that she was attempting to back out of our carport but surrounding the driveway were many men squatting down on the ground, each of them covered with a blue blanket. Suddenly she realized that she could back her car out without harming any of them. She proceeded to do so and they all were safe. Her belief in her ability to back out of the carport allowed her to maneuver a difficult experience and come through it without harm to herself or the men covered with the security by their blankets.

On the third night our son, who lives in Kansas City, dreamed that he saw me coming up the hill upon which we live. I was carrying perhaps a rolled up carpet and both the carpet and I were covered in dirt. About half way up the hill I laid the carpet roll down so that I could continue. That which I was carrying was too heavy a burden. He ran down the street and picked up my load and followed behind me in my footsteps. As we walked the hill I covered my head with a dirty shirt. I see in his dream the realization upon his part that I could not go the distance alone, that I must have assistance and that he was willing to step in and help me with my burden. Additionally, he walked behind me in my footsteps which I see as a very important dream detail. He was willing to follow the path which I had chosen.

These dreams are significant as they all focus on me. With my terminal health experience we were each attempting to come to terms with that experience and find the way for us to follow. I learned that to successfully complete my experience, I must simply accept it and continue to live in the moment. Diana learned that she could come through the experience without harm. And Parrish learned that he could help me, and he was willing to follow in my footsteps when the time came for him to do so.


 


 
 

Posted: Mon - October 11, 2004 at 05:23 PM        

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