“Dreams are the royal road to the unconscious.” – Sigmund Freud
“So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.” – Christopher Reeve
There are too many things that have happened in the last couple of weeks that have captured my imagination, stopped me in my tracks, or given me extreme joy or sadness, as the case may be.
Let us start with the passing of Theo. Oh, pardon me, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, who played the unforgettable character Theo in the phenomenal American sitcom ‘The Cosby Show,’ that show that got us all glued to our TVs, waiting for episode after episode.
“Of course, we are all witnesses to the passing of H.E., former president Muhammadu Buhari.”
A stellar cast of African Americans bringing us a middle-class African American family whose lives mirrored ours. Every character, from Bill Cosby, who played Dr. Heathcliff Huxtable, to his wife, Mrs. Huxtable, played by the inimitable Phylicia Rashad, and all the children, all the way to Rudy, were at the top of their game. We loved them, we followed them, and we learnt family lessons from them, but of course it was Theo that melted our hearts. The only son of Huxtable, mischievous, charming, and a mummy’s boy. His passing, having drowned in Costa Rica at such a young age, caught me off guard. We mourn, but we do not relent in our pursuit of all the values he stood for.
Three weeks ago, a superstar Nigerian writer came to Abuja promoting her book ‘Dreamcount’ to an audience of over one thousand people. It was lovely to see her again, and as always, there were shared compliments between us. But her interview, breathtaking as it was, is a story for another day.
Of course, we are all witnesses to the passing of H.E., former president Muhammadu Buhari.
Last week, while taking out over 40 miscreants and Boko Haram elements, some DSS operatives lost their lives. It stood in my chest like a bone. In America, those who serve in the military are often thanked for their service.
In Nigeria, not so much. My heart goes out to all who passed in the DSS last week. We thank the military and paramilitary services for keeping us safe.
But honestly, the safest place I can find most times is my dreams. I occasionally have bad dreams like everyone else, and sometimes wake up in tears.
The jury is still out on what dreams are made of and why we dream.
Research suggests that dreams serve several purposes, including memory consolidation, problem solving, emotional regulation, and brain development. But they also point to psychoanalytic theory, which is Sigmund Freud’s theory that dreams reveal repressed thoughts and desires.
I am quite a dreamer of the many different varieties. The one that returns me to my childhood, where a dog is running after me, the one my husband is amused about, where I am getting married to a total stranger, a party, owning a palace, and all those other comforting things. I wake up exhilarated, exhausted, or simply walking around with dream sparkles in my step and in my spirit. As a writer, sometimes if I am thinking hard about some content, it will surface in my dreams, vivid as a freshly painted canvas. The words would be on my lips and in my heart. I wake up to tranches of a movie script, a poem, or even a short story.
Oftentimes, I wake up to it, and between the bathroom call and a return to my bed, that freshness on my lips and in my heart evaporates as quickly as it had come, and poof, it’s all gone. I have been known to scribble on bits of tissue as the dream words speak to me; these days, I keep a notepad beside my bed in case of those thrilling, creative content dreams that might come my way.
Who knows, I might be lucky to get the gift of the gods, award-winning content straight out of my subconscious. But we have our subconscious dreams. Yes! Then we have the ones that are where we want to take our lives.
I love speaking to my mentees. I tell them I dream in technicolour, and I am intentional about the dreams for my future, dreams for my career, and dreams for my family.
Then I work towards it. I put my best foot forward. I go to school if I have to, source the tools, and then try to catch the low-hanging fruit.
Which dream is possible now? Which one have I prepared for now? Which one has support? Why dream of a large project when you have no funding, no support, and no plan?
I am a dreamer, no doubt, but other than the ones I have when I sleep, where I have no control, my other dreams are large and supported because no one should dream of large projects based on wishful thinking.
What are dreams made of? soft pillows, good sleepwear, floating through roses and cakes, but the other dreams are planned and executed well.
HAPPY DREAMING.
