Friday, September 15, 2006

To dream, perchance to sleep. *


What fascinating things dreams are.
In this amazing time of space exploration and genome mapping, we are still held completely captive and deeply puzzled by dreams.

What are they? What purpose do they serve?

No science has ever fully determined what a dream is, or why they occur.
Yet despite our ignorance, they continue to happen to each and every one of us every single night of our lives.
And we all dream; we may not remember our dreams in all their misty details, but we do dream.

How can it be that these multi-layered shows of light, sound and gripping emotion mean nothing?
How can it be that despite some of our most illustrious minds taking a stab at dream 'interpretation', we can't even know if they really DO have meaning beyond random brain spasms.

And how is it that not everyone dreams in the same manner?

I often wake with dazzling images of dreams still flashing full color in front of my alarm opened eyes, and blaring music (even AC/DC's "Highway to Hell"), echoing at full volume in my ears, while others claim to dream in only black and white and silence.

What about the raw, left over emotions that can grip one long into days afterward?
Who hasn't awoken, tears streaming down their face from grief?
Or smiled joyous throughout the day in remembrance of a particularly wonderful dream?
Turning bright red at the sight of a co-worker that one was involved with in a torrid affair not a few hours earlier isn't unheard of either.

Dreams contain everything we could hope for and all that we fear.
We understand so little about them that their shadowed secrets are safe for a long time, I think.
We can only lie back, settle into sleep and hope that we have 'sweet' dreams instead of the biting, chasing dreams we dread at 2:34am.

Of what do YOU dream?





*Apologies to W. Shakespeare of course!

11 comments:

Belizegial said...

Hello Tai!

I have been missing from here for awhile. The new school year and other stuff curtails my blogging time.

In reply to what my dreams are made up of at this time....mostly work related. I will be thinking of something at work which needs troubleshooting and then I fall asleep and continue the same trend in my dreams.

In the past though, I used to have dreams full of flight and fancy, of things and places I can only see in my dreams.

My dreams do tend to change with my age and development.

Enid

Tim Rice said...

Fascinating post!

My dreams often consist of travels, of friendships, and of getting lost.

fjl said...

Dreams are dependent on a number of factors; they're not as random as they seem. I'll blog on it soon x

Dinah said...

I had a dream last night where my father and sister and I were gansters or criminals or something, but my sister and I turned on my father and then he showed up and shot us. It was very weird.

djn said...

When Husband & I first started dating, I remember a dream that still cracks me up. Husband was covering me with half-shelled, oversized Easter eggs. I literally woke him up (I was still asleep but I remember it in my dream) asking him, "Am I perfectly, well hidden?" It was SUCH a peaceful dream because I felt like Husband was taking care of me. (and he was!)

Typically my dreams seem to reflect what's happening in my life at that moment.

My favorite dreams are sex dreams...

kimber said...

I dream in third person, and I normally have a soundtrack. One of my favorite dreams of all time: you, me, and a mountie were flying over a vibrant purple landscape.

Lindsey said...

I started keeping a dream journal a few years ago b/c my dreams get so unbelieveable.

Ian Lidster said...

Having been married more than once, I find that my wives often blend into my current wife as my dream goes on, but it seems perfectly logical for them to be this amalgam. Otherwise, here's one. I haven't seen my stepdaughter in a decade, yet when I dream of her (which I often do) she always looks as she would look now, not as she did at 16, which she was when I last saw her.
Interesting stuff, Tai

Ian

Mike said...

Well said! I guess you already saw what I dreamed. Yes, I am one of those that has wild, vivid, colorful, detailed dreams. None of that silent movie crap for me!

Grant said...

I once dreamed I exited the back of a shoe store only to find myself in an alternate dimension where I was killed by Darth Vader who injected my face with fudge. Typical stuff, but in color.

Zambo said...

Hi Tai.

I have no dreams.
I'm all dead inside.

(Just kidding. That's from Jim Carrey's old stand-up routine...I used to respond with that when people would ask how I was doing...A real crowd-pleaser)...

Anyway, I see colour in my dreams too...They're usually erotic in nature, or my worst fears realized, and sometimes both...

Take care out there, Tai!

Your Pal,

Zambo.