He woke suddenly, wide eyed and breathing rapidly. Sitting up, a bead of sweat trickled from his clammy forehead. His heart pounded wildly in his chest as he tried to calm down. A single thought kept running back and forth in his mind. “What the Hell?! I don’t know how to play guitar!!” Yes, these are the dreams that haunt us.
Do you ever get those nasty little dreams where you’re in completely over your head? You have to do something that you are completely unprepared, or even unqualified for, and there’s no way out of it? Stressful, “imposter syndrome” dreams that haunt your night time? Our brains are really talented at ruining a perfectly good sleep with dreams that haunt us throughout the rest of the day. I had one such dream the other night.
As with many dreams that we remember, some of the details are a little fuzzy. Here’s what I’ve been able to put together.
The beginning of my dream is unclear, but gradually becomes more focused. I’m looking at a newspaper or magazine that becomes Instagram (hey, it’s a dream!), and I see that the Foo Fighters are currently travelling. There’s a little screen that shows an airplane graphic flying over the ocean, with an arrow that has Dave Grohl’s name on it. There are other similar images that show the rest of the band is also in transit to somewhere. Somehow I’m feeling a sense of relief that they are away.
I’m With The Band
Then I’m in a room filled with musical instruments and sound equipment. There are quite a few people milling about. Someone hands me a guitar that has my name engraved on it. Cool! The other instruments are all embossed or engraved with other names. They are my friend’s names, though I’m not sure which friends.
It turns out the instruments are gifts from the Foo Fighters. For anyone who isn’t hip and cool like me, the Foo Fighters are a rock/grunge/punk band formed by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl in 1994 after the death of Kurt Cobain. Okay, now you’re up to speed…
Apparently we’re going to fill in for the band and play a concert somewhere. But now I’m concerned, because they seem to expect me to play guitar at this concert. And I thought I was going to be playing drums. I don’t know how to play guitar! (I also don’t know how to play the drums, but that didn’t seem to be an issue in my dream.) And because I thought I was going to be playing drums, now I need to find a drummer. So I’m thinking I’ll give my friend Ric a call, since he’s a drummer. But I can’t find his number. So I do the next logical thing; I wake up.
My Dreamworld Is Whacked!
It’s true. Throughout my life I have experienced some pretty crazy, vivid dreams. I’m sure everyone has, but they sometimes lead me to question my sanity. And that feeling is reinforced when I speak with my children about their dreams. Zachary says he almost never remembers his dreams. (He is under the impression that he doesn’t dream. Ha!) Beth-Rose dreams, but not to the same degree as me. Although she did once have a “nightmare” with Orcs dressed in tutus. She really is a lot like me!
Heather has lots of control dreams. Very similar to the “imposter syndrome” dreams, but usually a result of juggling several hundred balls all at once.
And me? I dream about iconic horror characters armed with pop guns, marrying Elizabeth Taylor dressed all in black, and entertaining Volodymyr Zelenskyy in my home! So owing to the fact that I don’t want a group of people in white coats knocking on my door and carting me away in an unmarked van, I won’t share the details…
Hey Mom, I’m Flying!
I haven’t had one in a while, but my favourite dreams are flying dreams. Over the years I’ve had quite a few flying dreams. And many times they’re lucid dreams, allowing me to control my flying. There is nothing more invigorating, euphoric, or breathtaking than flying in a dream. I love soaring above treetops and houses and, sometimes, clouds without any mechanical help. The feeling is incredible. When I wake from a flying dream, I’m relaxed and happy.
But for now, until the next lucid dream rolls around, I’ll have to be content with being an unqualified rock star who was chosen by the Foo Fighters to fill in. Yeah, sure, in my dreams!
How about you? What crazy dreams inhabit your sleepy-time routines? Drop a comment below. I’d love to hear I’m not the only one!
