I normally feel no need to record my dreams, but last night I had a dream that left me shaking when I woke up.
It wasn't a nightmare, but it was one of the most persistent dreams I've ever had. Of course, upon waking I realized that the logic makes no sense - but this is always the case with dreams. The worst aspect of it was its adamant reality (i.e. that it wasn't a dream). The dream was about being arrested in a foreign country and being put into prison.
Scene 1:
Dinner with the family, joking around; this actually sets the tone because we discussed how I would be travelling and to check in.
Scene 2:
Arrest. I'd rented a car in whatever country I was in, but it was sluggish and I rolled through a red light. Cop pulls me over, and as he asks me who I am I have the absolutely sickening realization that I don't have my passport. Not that it's in my hotel or something - I left it back in the States (how did I leave the country without it? Dream logic yo, makes no waking sense). I begin to say "I'm sorry, officer, but I've made a mistake..." and the police officer responds "You don't have your passport, do you?" I said no. He told me he would have to arrest me.
I asked if he would have still asked for my passport if I hadn't said anything. He said he wasn't sure.
Scene 2:
I'm in prison and, remarkably, making friends. I think to myself that it won't be long, that my family, lawyer, the U.S. will get me out soon. I begin suffering panic attacks when I meet other Americans in prison and learn that they've been there for years. I tell myself "Maybe it's just a dream, it's just a dream." One of them laughs at me and says "Good luck with that."
Scene 3:
Strange scene, a man follows me through the prison, which looks different, speaking things I don't remember. I wasn't afraid of him, and in the dream I think he wanted me to tell him something.
Scene 4:
For some reason I still have my phone, and for some reason I can see all the messages coming through from my family, but I can't make any calls or send any messages. They say things like, "Thought you were going to check in?" At this point I get very anxious again in the dream because I can't contact anyone, and I realize they have no way of knowing where I am or what happened to me.
Scene 5:
Really strange scene in which I have a discussion about subtext (...?). I tell someone that I don't mind songs with religious imagery as long as it serves a figurative purpose beyond simple naive worship. A guard overhears me and warns me that if the Gospel isn't enough for me, then nothing will be.
After this I woke up. It took me a few seconds to realize I was not in prison, but in my own bed. I don't usually have dream from which it's a relief to wake up.
Fucking dreams man, how do they work?
