A Walk in the Forest

I’m standing in a dark forest. Brilliant orbs of pink and blue light float softly through the air. There is no wind, not even a breeze. Perhaps there is no air, which would be a prerequisite for creating a breeze. But if there was no air, shouldn’t I be suffocating? And I’m not suffocating, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I’m breathing. I can’t tell one way or the other. I simply exist in this space. Somewhere in the distance I hear the soft chirping of crickets, the croaking of frogs. All the normal nighttime forest sounds one would expect. However, if there’s no air how can there be sound?  Maybe these sounds are radio waves being broadcast directly to my brain as opposed to the vibrating of molecules in the air, i.e. soundwaves. The basic laws of physics seem to be different here.

I begin to walk deeper into the forest. Sticks break and leaves crunch under the weight of my footsteps and even though I’m not wearing shoes, there is no pain. There are no mosquitoes, gnats, or other annoying insects as one might expect to contend with during an evening stroll through the woods. The air is warm and humid, what I would consider a perfect summer night. But didn’t I just mention how there may not be any air? So, how could the air be warm and humid? This is surely a confusing world, but surrounded by the beautiful lights, lack of bothersome insects, soft nighttime sounds, and perfect temperature, I’m at total peace here.

Deep in the forest is a faint glow like the aura created by distant city lights. I can only imagine that there must be a source of that illumination, so I begin to walk in the direction of the light. I don’t know how far I will need to walk, but I don’t care.  Everything is so peaceful here that I want to wander as long as I can. As I walk, I can’t help but be enthralled by landscape. Every tree seems beautiful to me, even if most are void of leaves. I walk past serene ponds shimmering in the pink and blue light, through deep ravines illuminated only by the glimmering light of the glowing orbs, and over ridges where the landscape spreads out before me in awe inspiring magnificence. I feel I’ve been wandering for hours when I climb to the crest of a hill and can finally see my goal.

In front of me lies one of the most breathtaking l landscapes I have ever seen. I’m standing on a cliff, directly above a small lake.  The soft ripples of the water reflect the pink and blue light. To the left side of the lake is a small stream, falling in delicate waterfalls before draining into the lake. Trees as straight as telephone poles and devoid of leaves are scattered across the landscape. Swirling through the trees is a beautiful, soft mist. The mist gives off a glow like the bioluminescent light emitted by fireflies and jellyfish. Blue swirls into purple, purple into pink, and pink back into blue. Dotted within the mist like stars in a galaxy are the glowing orbs. Three orbs float across the lake, their light reflecting softly on the water. At the center of everything is the soft, white light I’ve been drawn to and standing on a hill, backlight by the light, is a tall, skinny man.

I’m still too far away to see any details but it appears as though his arms and legs are jointed, like that of a ball joint doll.  The face seems to lack any detail and the feet and hands are only general shapes without features. An odd creature to be sure, but he doesn’t seem to be a malevolent creature.  I’m not afraid of him like some of the other monsters that roam my dreams.  Instead, I get a feeling that he is a safe, nurturing being. His right arm is extended, palm upturned, as though he’s holding something. I squint into the white light to focus on what could be in his hand. The white light doesn’t hurt my eyes as you might expect when staring into a bright light, but it does obscure my vision.  As I continue to strain into the light, the image of what he is holding begins to come into focus.

In this his hand is a faint pink ball of light. It’s the same ball of light as those that are floating everywhere within this forest.  He appears to be releasing it as one would release a lost bird back into the wild.  I want to get closer to see everything more clearly but when I take my next step, I wake up.

Often in dreams, vision tends to be blurred or singularly focused on one subject. It may be difficult or even impossible to read text or numbers. That’s not the case in this dream.  Everything is crystal clear and well defined. In fact, there are times when my vision seems unnaturally clear, as though I’m seeing the world through a microscope, or maybe just better glasses.  As I look around, there is no feeling of being detached or disconnected from reality. There is certainly no dissociation from reality. This world feels as real as when I am awake. Yet, I know that it is a dream. It’s not like dreams that you think are real until you wake up and realize it was all just a dream.  No, I know this is a dream and that somewhere I am cuddled up in a warm blanket, in a cozy bed, and fast asleep. This is a lucid dream. Except, I don’t need to perform pre-sleep exercises to achieve it.  I don’t need to have an anchor object, such as a red balloon or a ticking clock, to let me know that I am dreaming.  I just fall asleep and arrive in this dream, acutely aware that I am dreaming.

I don’t have lucid dreams every night, or even all that often. And it’s not always the same dream. There are many different worlds I have visited in my sleep. Some feel very safe, like this dream, while others are fantasy worlds with impossible wonders to explore. And then there are the nightmares. Obviously, I don’t like those.  Imagine experiencing your worst fears with utter clarity and then being able to remember them with remarkable accuracy when you awaken. Most people will wake up from nightmares feeling terrified but can’t remember why.  They just know they had a nightmare and by the time they are done with their morning shower, it’s all but forgotten.  But I don’t forget these dreams.  I carry that experience with me until it turns into a memory like any other daily experience.

Although I don’t have these ultra-realistic lucid dreams every night, I have them often enough that I feel there may be something that triggers them. I don’t wish to eliminate these dreams because I really like my safe dreams and exploring impossible worlds, but I do want to eliminate the nightmares. That’s why I decided to start logging these dreams in the hopes that I may be able to find a common thread among them and begin to gain control over my sleeping world.

My name is Althea, and these are my dreams.