Last Night I Dreamed

Last night I dreamed.

It was one of those dreams that on the surface, don’t seem to make a lot of sense and seemingly come from nowhere, but if one is completely honest, probably hints at some deeper meanings if one has the courage and wisdom to really ponder.

The details in this context are not particularly relevant, I think, but I was left with the remarks said to me by someone who profoundly impacted me, although I could not and did not perhaps fully understand this at the time.

She said, “Jonathan, you’re always in a hurry to be somewhere else.”

More than 2 decades on, those words still linger, and apparently come back when least anticipated. It sounds even more ominous when one realizes that those intervening years, by many measures, represent a “quarter lifetime” (if not more), and what we want (or think we do) out of life, is not always aligned with what we need.

Like many others, perhaps most others, my life has unfolded with unexpected twists and turns, detours from a path I was convinced I would follow. I like to think that in hindsight, perhaps I’m okay with that, but sometimes, if I’m really truthful with myself, I perhaps wonder if I am. Yet, even so, especially looking back, there are common threads tying together seemingly disparate strands, and in the path that appears to be revealed in front of me, the signposts and destination seem vaguely, if not achingly, familiar.

So last night I dreamed.

Called back in time to what once was, and reminded perhaps of a future that may yet be (in some respects), if I only have the patience and wisdom to let things unfold as they must, and trust in that journey.

Wherever you may be, M., hopefully you too have found solace, joy and all the other things that we naturally long to experience in this world, amid the inevitable less pleasurable experiences.

And maybe, just even occasionally, when you dream, should any of my words reform from the hazy mists of time, I hope they at least elicit a wistful smile and appreciation for what once was, as imperfect as it may have been…?

Photo Credit: "Dreams" by Jose Eivissa, Flickr Creative Commons License

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