The Dream, Part 5

I left my gracious host and got back into the boat.
Once I was inside it began to move once more.
We passed the tree and moved forward. The boat
navigated the snags of roots deftly as before. Like
before I was unsure of how much time had passed
or was passing. Eventually another large tree came
into view. It was not as large but it was still imposing.
There was an otherworldly glow in the water around
it. The boat came to a stop before it. I looked out the
side and saw light radiating from the water. I stood
there for a few moments and wondered what was
next. At last I decided to jump in as He had said.
As I jumped the cool water enveloped me. After a
moment I could see the bright light focused directly
below me. I swan past the roots and to it as quickly
as I could. It kept growing stronger in it's brightness
and intensity. The light began to overwhelm my
vision but I kept pushing towards it. At last, I felt
myself fully in the light and not sure what to do
I opened my mouth and closed my eyes.
Finally, I opened my eyes.

The Dream, Part 4

The boat arrived at the landing that led to the door.
I stood up and felt the boat sit as perfectly still as
land. A small wooden walkway led directly to the
entrance. The sense of warmth was palpable.
The door was left cracked open. I knocked and
pushed it open slowly. Stepping inside I could
see candles lighting every surface. Shelves were
covering all the walls and were filled with books
upon books. None were dusty. I heard a faint foot
step into the room. "You're here. I'm glad you
were able to make it." he said. He appeared to be
an older man in his late sixties. Salt and pepper
hair, long but well groomed gray beard, well worn
brown pants, a green flannel shirt, and a voice that
exuded comfort and calm. I asked him what his
name was. "Does my name really matter? I can
tell you my name is Joseph but you would have no
way to know I am lying. Our names matter little.
My name, even less. I know what your name is
but I have no need to use it." I looked at him
and asked "Can I call you anything?" "Of course"
he said, "Whatever makes you feel at ease."
I thought for a moment and asked "What is this
place? Why am I here?" He sat down in an old
overstuffed chair and motioned for me to sit on
the couch across from him. "This place...this
place clears your thoughts from everything
that seeks to disrupt you. The calm waters and
the boundless gray skies are not meant to scare
or threaten you. They are meant to clear your
mind of everything. Everything that troubled or
disturbed you, everything good and bad, all of
this has been gradually cleansed from your
thoughts. Only when this has been accomplished
will you first see the roots and began your journey
here. As to why you are here, well, that is some
thing you can answer." I had to think about it for
a moment and I said one word, "Clarity."
He nodded affirmatively. "The clarity of mind you
now have can now be taken with you to where
you need to go. Do you believe yourself to be
ready?" he said. I nodded. If this this is true
then you must go back to the boat. It will take you
to the tree of glowing water. When you arrive
to it you will see light coming from under it's roots.
You must swim towards it and follow it. That
is what you must do."

The Dream, Part 3

As the boat continued past the gnarled root I began
to wonder what it had been part of. What kind of
life had once existed here. I gazed into the distance
and saw nothing else like for some time. Right before
I was going to lay down I once again saw the familiar
shaped of a gnarled root come into view. It was not
merely a root this time. A submerged field of these
roots lay ahead. The boat continued on. Once we
were close it became apparent that the boat was
going to enter this labyrinth of roots. I was worried
at first but the boat began to steer through as easily
as it were still moving in a straight line. I looked at
all the roots in their various twists and formations.
There was an odd beauty to them I could not resist.
How long we moved through this I do not know.
It can't be known. After much time I saw something
loom further ahead. Something that seemed at once
familiar but unknown. There at the far reach was a
magnificent tree whose trunk was a large and vast
thing. It's roots stretched in all directions. There was
something I had not seen in all this time- light.
There was a window and door hewn into the vast
body of the tree and light was burning warm and
bright. The boat began to slow as it grew closer.

The Dream, Part 2

And so I drifted. I drifted until I did not know if it
was possible to drift any more. I do not know if time
existed, if I drifted for days, weeks, or years. I could
have drifted for decades and felt the same. I never
felt hunger or pain. I existed purely adrift. The waters
never moved beyond the small rippling wake behind
me as the boat and I moved through. There was never
anything to see beyond the horizon. It was as though
it were a world of pure water. The water was devoid
of fish or any creatures that I could see. When I grew
sick of watching the water I would watch the vast
uninterrupted sky. A gray that neither felt brooding
nor welcoming. It stared with the unblinking eye of
whatever gods claimed this world. After an unknowable
amount of time passed at last something came into view
from the horizon. It was an odd shape jutting from the
water. Once I was closer I was able to see that it was
the gnarled root of something that may have been a
tree. The boat did not stop. It continued along as if
there was a more important place to be.

The Dream, Part 1

In this dream I wasn't running. In fact, nothing of the sort
was even happening. It was quite different than that.

I opened my eyes and immediately saw boundless gray sky.
Formless, it stretched across vast and uninterrupted. It was
quiet and still. I sat up and realized I was in a small boat. It
felt like perhaps it was more of an old lifeboat than anything.
In every direction I could see there was nothing but still water.
I could see no sight of land. I felt a slight motion in the water
and the boat began to very slowly move along. Aside from
the slight motion of the boat there was no other kind of action
or sound to be heard. It was a stillness so all encompassing
that it felt absolutely total. There was a strange beauty to it.
As far as I could tell there was no day or night. The hours
passed with no change to the sky or light. It simply was.
I lay down on my back and closed my eyes. I focused on
my breathing. I tried to keep my breath measured and steady.