Wednesday, February 20, 2013

The Lucid Dream

Last evening was spent in the company of my friend Joe who is an opera singer and efficienado. He was telling me in great detail about an opera he had been in recently at the Met. It was full of elephants parading, extensive set changes, spear carriers and lots of dancers. I guess his description was exciting enough that it was the theme of my dream that night. I might also say that Bourbon was involved in more than a small way.
I was suddenly wondering around backstage in a huge show with elephants, dancers, and lots of sets. I was clueless about what I was doing, but the visuals were wonderful. It was a massive theatre, sometimes an amphitheatre sometimes an auditorium that rivaled the Paris Opera house. That is the wonderful thing about dreams... they do not have to conform to the natural laws of physics. I was aware that people kept coming up to me saying what a wonderful theatre I had here in my back yard as I wondered around trying to figure out what was happening. I became a little upset that this massive show had been mounted in my backyard theatre and I didn't know much about it, nor had I approved of it coming to my magical amphitheatre.  The elephants were trampling the grass and the giraffs were eating my trees. I was pissed.
Finally the director, an asian man who looked a little like Ang Lee, came up to me to calm me down. He said, "Perhaps you can do some act in the show tomorrow night." I was at once flattered and challenged by what I might do in this incredibly large space. I told him that I certainly could do an act if they could figure out how to attach an HDMI cord to my iPad and project the image on a very large screen.  He set about yelling for the produciton people to "Find me an HDMI cord... now."
The anxiety of performing began to take over my senses. What would I do with this technical wizardry... did I really have a routine that would work.  The stress was palitable when it suddenly came to me in the dream.... I don't have a theatre in my back yard, and if I did, I would be the star of the show not some added attraction.  It was at that moment I knew I was dreaming, but I didn't wake up. Instead, I said to myself... if this is a dream, I can do anything I could think of. I first thought of the routine I could do with an HDMI hookup. At the same moment I said to myself, screw that... if I can do anything..... I want to fly.
The tecky handed me a small black electronic box and said it was my HDMI connection.  I held it like a television remote control and took off like I was superman flying above the amphitheatre. I was even taking people on a ride with my new found ability. I felt the rush of weightlessness and the thrill of loops in the air.  It was wonderful.
As I was soaring above the elephants and giraffs it came to me that this was still a dream.  I was having fun but said to myself, "you know dreaming about flying is the sign of ambition."  What an ambitous person I was flying so well. 
Unfortunately my ambition did not last long enough to reap the benefits.  I woke up. Stressed that I could not fly, did not have a theatre in my backyard and had no clue what I would do with an HDMI connection to my iPad.
I have read about astral projection, and lucid dreaming.  This is the first time that I have become concious of being conscious of participating in the experience.  Now I konw what all the fuss is about.  It was as the Shamans tell us.. a mind altering moment. 
As you were,
Jay

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