"Inside The Mind's Eye"

One thing I find so fascinating about how my mind works, is that when I dream, those dreams usually tend to be complete stories -- Hollywood-like movie stories, with a beginning, middle, and an end. And, not only that, I usually end up dreaming every night, and I can still remember bits and pieces when I awake.

Most of the time these dream-stories are science fiction in nature (which perhaps reflects my waking interest in the same), but they've also been romance (sorry guys, I dream clean!), and sometimes even mild suspense-thrillers too. Rarely ever do I have nightmares.

This morning, when I awoke, I had that same kind of feeling you have after watching a thought-provoking movie in the theatre. I usually don't try to find a meaning in my dreams, I just enjoy them for the stories that they are. This morning's story, however, was fascinating enough that I though I'd share it with you. Here's a recap.

I dreamed that I was among a number of humans taken from present-day Earth, by a benevolent race of aliens interested in learning more about our species (yeah, I know, cliche... keep reading). We were taken to some far-off world, and incorporated into their society as indentured servants, beloved household "pets" (the closest analogy I could come up with), and in some cases, placed in observable communities. We were treated with fascination and respect (even when a few of us rebelled), we were given rights akin to their own, and peacefully assimilated into their society.

We were also granted immortality, and never once -- contrary to popular alien mythology -- experimented on. We were just observed as the individuals we were, allowed to move freely about their society, included in their expansive culture, and encouraged to explore their unique environment. And, to be honest, life was good.

After about a hundred years, their fascination with us had worn off, and we were given the opportunity to return to Earth. Since we had not aged, we were essentially returning in the same condition we had left, only the world had advanced far beyond anything we were familiar with. In essence, we had become aliens on our own planet.

Now that I was home again, the rest of the dream dealt with me (no longer immortal) exploring the world I had once known before I was taken away. All of those places, however, were new, and different -- yet, as is the case with our own history -- somewhat similar. Imagine being taken from earth in 1900, living on an advanced alien world, and then returning to earth in 2008. That's basically how this dream played out. It was real (I could see, smell, feel, etc)... and there was far more to the story than I could ever write here.

I'm sure there've been Hollywood movies, books, and who knows what else, that deal with this sort of concept, yet I can't seem to think of any at the moment. It was just... an entertaining, and extraordinarily thought-provoking dream.

You know, I've often wondered: how much of my frequent dreaming comes from me, and how much comes from random external sources? My imagination was always encouraged as a child, and now that I've grown up, it permeates just about everything I do. Right now I'm an artist creating whatever my mind can dream up, and I'm an actor using my own perspective to make someone else's fictional character come to life. My very job is to tap into the boundless imagination I developed as a child. Is my imagination really that deep, that it permeates my dreams too?

I tell you, the human mind fascinates me to no end. Computers can do amazing things these days, but there will never be anything as complex or creative as the human mind. My imagination -- waking or asleep -- is one of a kind. And that, to me, is pretty darn cool!

-Jon
posted by Jon at 11:36 AM  I   I  0 comments