One Must Imagine Sisyphus Happy

A bedroom

It's, I don't know, 5am? I've got that wild feeling, so I assume the usual posture in bed. I wait. It's sort of like the feeling when you pick up a phone, but for whatever reason, it takes a moment for the dial tone to start. And then you dial and again, randomly, there's an unusual pause before you start to hear the ringback. Like you're waiting to connect, and you're confident it will happen, but there's just an extra beat that makes me think, Hmm, did I make a mistake? But then it starts and all is well. My body buzzes and The Dreaming picks up the other line.

Gingerly at first, I peel my dream body away from the sleeper. I take a deep breath to stabilize. The window is to my left but the window behind me is missing. So it's no longer my bedroom. Let's get outta here. I phase through the window and hover out in the night sky. It is either a blank canvas or a bleak landscape, depending on my mood. An all black sky with just the faintest hint of light. The ground below, a featureless expanse of dirt or maybe concrete. I look back at the house I exited. It is an uninspired starter home, dotted by a few trees, but that's it. Unimpressed, I contemplate my options. Now what? I double check the sky. Nope, not even the moon is out. I scan the horizon. Maybe in the distance there is a low range of mountains. Yawn.

Another deep breath. Maybe this one is more of a heavy sigh. Bored, I become aware of my hovering. Do I bob slightly as I hover or do I remain still? It's entirely a matter of affectation. I try holding still. That's fine. I try a gentle bob. That's kinda cool. I try a different affect, as if I am stabilized by jet thrusters. Eh, kinda cool but too much work. One of the jets slips and I lose my balance. I feel The Dreaming shudder as it starts to destabilize.

I'm back in bed. Serves me right for vain tinkering, I scold myself. Let's go back. This time, I mean to sink through the bed but instead I slurp off the bed like a puddle of water. I think of the "genie" transition effect in Mac OSX. I rematerialize off the floor. If you're going to be difficult -- ! I chide to no one in particular.

I see the same window but stop to contemplate the room. It's rather plain. The layout bares some resemblance to my room, but the bed is different and there's no furniture besides the bed. Who's room is this? I amuse myself with the thought that this is some kind of walk of shame. I've found myself in someone else's bed and now I must discretely slip out and return home. Again bored, I wait a beat. Let's do this properly. I command The Dreaming to restart.

I'm back in bed yet again. This time I sink smoothly through the bed and into a familiar place I call The Field.

The Field

It's an open field of long but evenly manicured damp grass. Above is a slightly starry night sky with the moon looming prominently, large and full. So, the sky is mostly dark but the grass and atmosphere near the ground is rather brightly lit, like the field of a sports stadium for an evening game. But there are no light stands, buildings, or human development at all, at least not for miles around. The quality of the light is interesting. While it is like that stadium analogy, it's not that washed out white light, nor is it moonlight. It's a warm reddish orange like an early dawn. The light contrasts so perfectly with the greenness of the grass as it sparkles off the damp dew.

When I have nothing else planned, I come here to The Field. Sometimes it's a jumping off point to elsewhere, but most often, and for this night, I just linger here and wait for the sun to rise. As it rises, light starts to fill the sky while the lighting of the grass remains unchanged. Gradually, the ambient light of dawn matches the lighting of the grass and it no longer seems surreal. And then I wake with the real sun filtering through the blinds of my window. Ahh.