I Dream of Dreams

You know for all the criticism that J.K. Rowling sometimes receives about her writing, I think she really deserves some credit. I can't tell you the number of times I've found her words resonating in my mind - months, now even years since I've read some of her books. And what always amazes me about some of the things she says in her books is how wise she must be, especially when it comes to things Dumbledore says (seriously, I am in awe of how wise she must be - either she is freakishly wise or she has a very special muse speaking through her .... but the idea of where writing comes from is another post altogether).

Take this gem for example: 'It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.'

In the book when Dumbledore says this he's really speaking about our heart's greatest desires, dreams in that sense, but for me, for me I have to heed this advice when it comes to my actual night-time dreams. Not all of my dreams of course are so fascinating and enjoyable that I run the risk of forgetting to live of course, but some of them - I don't know, there's just something about them. Some quality that isn't present in most other dreams ... it's this sensation that they leave me with - I can hardly describe it. In my whole life so far I can only think of 4 or 5 dreams that had this affect on me - but how they captivate me! I remember these dreams so vividly, I can remember the intense colours and the feelings of wonder or absolute peace that they brought me.

One in particular brings me such a sense of calm - it's so simple, I'm simply in a small boat (a canoe or rowboat) and I'm in the middle of this lake just floating round and round in circles and the water is still, so magnificently still and the sky is perfectly and completely reflected in the water - an endless blue sky with those small white puffy clouds that go on and on - and there's no telling where the water ends and the sky begins and I'm just there floating in the centre.... content, at peace.

And I think about these dreams all the time and I just want so desperately to have another one - 4 or 5 times in 21 years just seems too short a frequency to experience such beauty. I want more, I want to feel this way every night.

Sometimes I think I'm becoming obsessed with my dreams and I wonder what causes this. Is this desire somehow a reflection on my "real" life? What do these dreams mean? Am I so obsessed with them of late because of my insomnia? Do they evade me because of these stressful periods?

What is with these dreams? Have you ever had dreams that leave you with a similar feeling? What are your thoughts on why we dream the things we do and why some dreams just stay with us?