I have always wondered about how dreams come about…you may joke about that cold piece of pizza you had before bed or chalk it up to having a lot on your mind or blame it on your pregnancy (that is me right now).
But whatever the origin, it is always interesting to ponder…and sometimes a little frightening. Growing up, I had the same dream frequently…now I can’t really remember what it was about, but it was exactly the same every time, even to the extent that I could partially wake up and I could “finish” the dream in my semi-conscious state.
I also will have dreams regularly where I can’t see clearly what is happening. It is almost like I don’t have my contacts in or glasses on and I’m forced to do whatever the dream is about in this blurry state. It is really weird and extremely frustrating, because it is this loss of control or maybe more like a feeling of moving through jello – slow, labored, and terribly inefficient.
My latest dream experience happened to be more of a nightmare. You know, those dreams that jolt you awake and you end up tossing and turning, scared to go back to sleep because you might dream it again.
The details are hazy, but the most disturbing part was that in the dream, i was on some sort of ship with a homicidal maniac and they hurt someone…no, I had not been watching NCIS…anyways, the really horrible part was that somehow I had known that they were hurt and I had not immediately gone to help them because I was doing something else…I can’t remember what exactly.
Anyways, it was totally disturbing that I ignored someone in pain because I was “busy”. Yes, I realize it wasn’t reality, but how callous is that? So, I laid in bed – wide awake -and wondered if I would ever do that. Not that I am planning to be around death and destruction…but are there times where I either overlook or am too distracted to notice the needs of others?
Unfortunately, I do think I am guilty of this sometimes. I may think…I really should call/ email/ facebook that person, but time slips by and I get distracted by the mundane day to day tasks of life and then all of a sudden, a month has gone by and I have completely missed an awesome opportunity.
We sort of talked about this in small group a couple of weeks ago…just that one of the ways to find calm is in serving and reaching out to others. And here I am, feeling like that us the last thing on my kind because I have so much going on, when that can’t be an excuse for not being aware of the people and the needs around me.
So, maybe I just needed a dramatic reminder that I can’t get so caught up in my own world that I fail to see what is happening right around me…I guess I better learn my lesson, because I sure don’t want to have that dream again!!
