Dreams

This morning, or last night, I had a weird dream. It was a strange mixture of fiction and memories from long ago. I usually forget my dream almost as soon as I open my eyes, but somehow my dream this morning stayed with me. I think it was my dream this morning, and I think I woke up in the middle of it, courtesy of my friendly alarm. The dream felt like the beginning of a mystery novel, so I wrote down bits of it, before it fades.

The strange thing about it was the mix. Parts of the dream were very real, and took place in my old secondary school. I couldn’t see all of it though, and it felt unfamiliar. There was a girl in my dream, but it wasn’t me. It was hard for me to concentrate on work this morning, because these images kept going through my mind and I wanted to hold on to them somehow.

I read a book a while ago by one of my favourite Dutch authors on the way she writes her novels. She describes the way stories find her, and she just has to work out what story this is. It’s not as easy as it sounds, but sometimes I recognise something of what she says. Like the way the story was there this morning, but it was just the start. Or maybe something in the middle. It was just so intriguing, I want to know what happens next. Last year I started another story, which got lost a little while ago. Starting point for this one was an image I had before my eyes when I was in Kirkwall, Orkney last year.

I had to catch a tram into work this morning because I didn’t get a chance to fix the flat tire on my bike over the weekend. I’m no good at fixing flats anyway, and always depend on the help of my partner. He fixed my tire before I even got home this afternoon, wonderful!

But I digress. I like cycling in the morning, the fresh air, a little exercise, not being dependent on public transport, and gradually moving from the world of work to the world of my home. But sometimes it isn’t so bad travelling by tram because you get a different perspective again. When I cycle I always feel rushed, I want to go faster, and I don’t like getting stuck behind slower traffic. I can even get pretty aggressive. Travelling by tram is more relaxing in that respect. Once I am on the tram there is nothing I can do about the pace, so I just sit back and enjoy the view. And I always see things I don’t get to see when I’m cycling.