Trying to Recapture an Elusive Dream

 Teddybears At the Museum of Childhood, Pen-ffynnon. A wonderful place to recapture the past. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Thoughts after waking from a short nap:

       Remembering a dream can be difficult enough, but trying to reenter a wonderful dream after a moment of wakefulness is sometimes a frustrating impossibility.  There can be times that no matter how hard we may try to return to sleep, waking life calls us whether or not we actually need to be up. This is in contrast to those other circumstance when we cannot seem to escape the clutches of a fearful dream that we fall in and out of, wishing that it might go away and yet seeming unable to shake ourselves loose from that nightmare.

        There are times when I will be dreaming of something most wonderful and pleasing only to be awakened for some reason.   The phone might ring or some other external stimulus will rouse me from a blissful sleep.  Sometimes I awaken for no real understandable reason other than my body sensing in some way that it needs to wake up my brain.  This often occurs during a brief nap in the daytime.  Perhaps there is something of the nature of a brain center of responsibility that is telling me to get back into the waking world because there is work to be done or the business of living to which to attend.

       Indeed, sometimes the depths of sleep and dreaming beckon me to enter for some interminable length of time--perhaps even forever.  My mind somewhat begrudging stirs and resists any attempt to return to sleep, to find again that dream that it so leisurely drifted through.  I want to keep on dreaming that wonderful vision of sleep that calls to me from a secret place deep within me.  But the dream is elusive and will not let me return into its magical realm.

        I am a creature of the waking world for the time that I live.  At times the necessity of sleep will open the door to that secret elusive dream world and let me in for a brief while.  I cannot stay for that would violate the laws of being alive and wakefulness.   I read, watch movies, listen to music, or let my imagination wander.  Those are but substitutes for what my dream world promises me.

         To return to the dream might be considered cheating life.  The attempt to replace an imaginary paradise or even a chimerical hell by dreaming away life into an existence of mind only is a paradox to defy actual existence in order to become nonessential to the waking world.   Dreams are intended to be fleeting and temporal as long as we exist in the world of the living.

        As much as we try to return to the dream or escape from it, the dream is an unreal reality of the mind or a real unreality to our interaction with the living world.   We often want that which we cannot have, but every so often we all get a small taste of it.

        Do you think that death could be a doorway into the world where our dreams exist?    Have you ever tried to return to a sweet dream that eluded you?    Are you able to go back to sleep after waking and continue a dream that you were having?

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Waking Life #atozchallenge

Cover of Waking Life

            Waking Life (2001) is another must see dream film.  This film adheres most closely to dream time and unraveling of events than any film I've see.  There is not much of a coherent story, but rather a connected series of dreams.  The dreams in some cases make reference to earlier dreams in the film while others refer to actual waking life.  This is another one of those films where what is dream and what is real is not always evident.   Ironically the film would probably have been more appropriately named "Dream Life" since most, or maybe all of the film occurs in dreams.

            Much of the dialogue in Waking Life concerns matters of philosophy and dream theory which makes this film a rather thought-provoking intellectual experience. The film is animated but through a process where actual actors were filmed first and then the entire film was made cartoonish.  It's an interesting effect that you may have seen in commercials and other short films.

           You can find a more in depth analysis of Waking Life on this blog in a previous post.

           Have you seen Waking Life?   Do you enjoy animated films?    Are you interested in seeing films that mostly consist of dialog on matters of philosophy and other intellectual issues?

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Dream Movies to See: Waking Life

Cover of Waking Life

           Many movies include dream sequences used for various dramatic effects, but far fewer are movies strictly about dreaming.  The movies that are built around the topic of dreaming are usually far-fetched fantasies, mind-bending horror tales, or science-fiction/speculative studies of the dream world.

           Then there is Waking Life, a 2001 film by Richard Linklater.   Waking Life is a remarkable film on many levels.  Not to be merely passed off as a cartoon for adults, Linklater's film was actually shot on digital video using live actors and then given the animated appearance through a process called rotoscope, where the frames are drawn over and colored in.  This process creates a visual that is a very disorienting fluid look.  The result is a wonderfully fanciful dreamscape.

           There is limited plot to the film.  Basically the main character wanders from scene to scene meeting up with an assortment of characters with whom he carries on a variety of conversations that cover topics such as philosophy, religion, politics, and the very nature of dreaming life versus waking life.  As the film progresses, the unidentified main character tries to figure out whether he is dreaming or not and eventually tries to find a way to escape the ongoing dream in which he feels trapped.  The basic story is comparable to a Twilight Zone episode.

           This a talking film--little in the way of action, but a lot of very interesting discussion.   Waking Life almost comes across as a sort of documentary about ideas and theories.  In a sense the film seems like a college catalog where we are given overviews of course topics.   Many of the characters are actually real life philosophers, authors, and other academics expressing some of the ideas for which they are known.

           I've watched this film a number of times and probably will watch it many more.  For me, the film never gets boring as the concepts presented can stimulate some deep thinking.  I still haven't comprehended everything the characters in the film are trying to convey in their discourses.  One idea is touched upon and then the scene moves on to another.  It's a relatively short film that moves quickly because of the pace of flowing from scene to scene.

           The soundtrack is outstanding.  Mostly tango influenced, probably because the music is performed by a tango ensemble that consists of a string quartet, an accordion, and keyboard.  The music is appealing and what could be accurately described as haunting.  This is one of my favorite soundtracks.

           Waking Life presents the most accurate film recreation of what a dream is like, from the look of the film to the conversations in the dialog to the disorienting effect of the complete experience.  This could be one of my dreams.

            If you are willing to take the 90 minute journey and don't require constant action, you might enjoy Waking Life.   I find it to be intellectually stimulating and a learning experience--or at least a thinking experience.  It could be great fun for viewing with family or friends who like to discuss what they've seen.  I encourage you to try it out.  Let me know what you think of the film if you watch it.


          Have you seen Waking Life?   What did you think?    Can you think of any other films that deal strictly with the process of dreaming, the nature of the mind, and the philosophy of existence?  

 


           

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Dynamic Flow: The Dream

Art by Ada Z

         On one particular morning I woke up with a complete clarity of mind resulting from an elucidation delivered through a dream message.  A consummate comprehension of money and the workings of wealth had been explained to me.  My confidence concerning my personal economic status swelled as I realized that money would no longer be something that I would have to worry about.

         The concept that was given to me in the dream I intuitively recognized as "Dynamic Flow".  I cannot say if the meaning of this term was verbally explained to me, demonstrated in some way, or something that I just knew.  But I did know the meaning.   Dynamic Flow is the theory that states:  Outward movement of money will result in an incoming flow of money.

          My mental state soared as I believed that an age old secret of wealth had been bestowed upon me.  It was early morning as is the usual case in this stage of my life when I wake up.  Per my custom my first action of the morning was to check the computer.  But before checking through my emails or blog, I immediately opened up a new post window and entered the title "Dynamic Flow".   I then went to the text box and entered:  Dynamic Flow is the theory that states, "Outward movement of money will result in an incoming flow of money."

          As I continued through my morning--eating breakfast, doing morning chores, checking through emails--the essence of the dynamic flow concept stayed with me, but my enthusiasm waned as I no longer understood all that had seemed so clear to me when I first woke up.  And now I have a vague idea about the dream definition of dynamic flow, but it no longer seems so amazing and life changing as it did right after having dreamed it.

         I have had dreams like this on occasion.  I will dream of a concept that seems revelatory and profound, leaving me with a belief or delusion of great life-changing discovery.  Then as my mind becomes distanced from the dream I begin to face reality?  Lose the truth revealed in the dream?  Realize the lie that had been presented to me?  I'm not sure what the answer is, and I suppose it could be any of these depending on the dream.

         The messages of dreams are not always clear nor are they necessarily overtly true.   If dreams are messages from the subconscious mind then the truths may be disclosed by lies of symbolization of dream images that are tangible and intangible representations of things that we know in waking life or they could possibly be misinterpretations that we have made about things in waking life as we have seen or experienced them.   Or are they lies that come from some place or being outside of us?  This would be the most frightening thought.

          Have you ever awoken with thoughts of apparent genius until you thought them through and realized they made no sense?    Have you ever awoken with a brilliant idea that did make sense and you were able to apply in some useful way?   Have you ever had dreams that you believe could have been planted in your mind by some outside evil force?