Monday, November 3, 2014

Dream a little dream ...


Seems funny now, trying to explain the inspiration for this post about dreams.  Ironically it came to me very poetically on a restless and sleepless night only a couple of weeks ago. First poetry arrived, filling my thoughts and suddenly I knew what my direction and writing would include in this entry about dreams. 

"Dreams are illustrations... from the book your soul is writing".

~Marsha Norman~


I grew up with parents nightly announcing it's bedtime Vera... Mr. Sandman will soon arrive".  Mr. Sandman is a fairytale, a mythical character in European folklore associated with sleep and dreaming. Mr. Sandman has magical power just by sprinkling sand into children's eyes to lure them into sleep. Sure... Seriously sand ... Oh the land of make believe. Although in the book Mr. Sandman it is also referred to as sprinkling a sleep dust into children's eyes.


But what you don't know about me is as a child bedtime was an enjoyable end of a perfect day, actually still is. Creativity bursts forth in my dreams, the simple fact is our brains are more active while asleep than during the day. 

Mr. Sandman first appeared in 1941 in the fairytale "Ole Lukoje" by Hans Christian Anderson. Photo is an illustration of Mr. Sandman from the book. 

Dad was a true crooner and he loved to sing. My Dad worked shift work and having him home to tuck me into bed every third week as a child was always a fun awaited event. I would hear my Dad walking down the hallway -

Bung, bung, bung, bung, bung
bung, bung, bung, bung, bung,
Bung, bung, bung, bung, bung,
bung, bung, bung, bung, bung
Bung, bung, bung, bung, bung

Turning the corner and appearing in my doorway now in full verse...
"Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream (bung,bung,bung.bung)
Make him the cutest thing that I've ever seen ...
Give him two lips like roses and clover (bung, bung, bung, bung, bung)
Then tell him that his lonesome nights are over.
Sandman, I'm so alone
Don't have nobody to call my own... 
Please turn on your magic beam
Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream."

I loved that song sung by the Chordettes, still do! Want to hear all the lyrics?  Click on the You Tube video below, live from 1958. But here's the disclaimer, I can not guarantee it won't lock in your brain! If it does, remember to make it exit with singing a loud and big finish. Although I'll admit it's still in my head!


It is said that we dream between 1,460 to 2,190 dreams a year. Our brains are more active while asleep than during the day. For the simple act of sleeping recharges our creativity.

Photo In our bedroom at the end of our day just about to dive into a freshly made bed... 


A little inspiration to inspire Parisian dreams tonight. Our bed is a modern redesign of a 1940's French sleigh bed, it sits in the corner. I have always enjoyed an angled bed, to me it's dramatic and welcoming.

"Sleep is the best Meditation."

~Dalai Lama~


90% of a dream vanishes during the first minute awake. As a child and even into my 20's I kept a dream journal. 


"Dreams are often most profound when they seem the most crazy."

~Signund Freud~


Bizarre dreams still have meaning. According to Harvard Medical School dreaming can help you learn. When the brain dreams it helps you learn and solve problems. Which accounts for the saying "Sleep on it."

Plus reoccurring dreams are your brains way of telling you something. 


You can actually control your dreams. An awareness that you are dreaming, is called "lucid dreaming". With training lucid dreams can last upwards of 30 minutes. 

Guess what? Have a fantasy dream - you don't need to be asleep to dream! Recall a dream you had and bring it back into your waking awareness, surely it will play out.

"Dreams digest the meals that are our days."

~Terri Guillemels~



Surrealism ... Using dream like images
Salvador Dali would wake himself up the moment sleep came to him to capture in his paintings his surreal dream images.

"Give me two hours a day of activity and I'll take the other twenty two in dreams"

~Salvador Dali~

"Surrealism is destructive, but it destroys only what it considers to be shackles limiting our vision."

~Salvador Dali~




We dream every 90 minutes throughout the night. Which equals to more than 100,000 dreams in a lifetime and we sleep 1/3 of our lives away. 


Nightmares occur more in children. My belief is that children are just learning to expand their understanding and acceptance of their imaginations.

"Dreams are answers to questions we haven't figured out how to ask."

~X files~



Dreaming recharges our creativity and guess what - our pets dream very similar dreams to ours. 

Now to explain this photo ... After an enjoyable weekend meal and a bottle of wine while we were in the kitchen loading the dishwasher and making cappuccino and serving up dessert Max >^..^< jumped up on the dining room table. Yeah, OK tables are for glasses and not cat asses! But he seemed deep in a dream and was snoring while we sat down and enjoyed coffee and dessert as his whiskers flicked in la la land.

Best ever dream fact? Our bodies burn more calories sleeping than awake! 
Very worst fact - Avoid sleep for more than 10 days and you will die!  Also just for your information the colder your house is the worst your dreams are. Plus thankfully only 12% of us dream in Black and White. My dreams are full vivid color!!! I strive for 8-9 solid hours of restorative sleep nightly, but still need to count calories!

So until my next post, dream sweet dreams. 
xx,
Vera



Dreams can be magical, allowing our creativity to freely take flight in the middle of night...
Empowering our abilities and then - pouf - dreams disappear in the mornings bright light.

Chasing our memory and trying to recapture dreams with a fantasy gossamer butterfly net.
As you process remaining fleeting glimpses of your technicolor dream trying hard not to forget.              

Some nights we dream of an illusional fantasy we think makes everything crystal clear,
but oftentimes when we awaken our beliefs and desires just seem crippled by ones own fear.

A kaleidoscope of wondrous colors flash by in REM sleep with closed eyes, but with an open mind.
Answers we seek while sleeping, perhaps because of a mentally relaxed state is always what we hope to find.

Why is it in dreams our heart can sing a joyful song, a rhythm of our soul that knows no bounds?
Realization that eminent dreams can accomplish unlimited possibilities in achievement  just truly astounds!        

Harnessing the power of the subconscious during dreams to guide our thoughts throughout a normal hectic day...
A destined potential that our awakened minds retain illusive dreams in memory that can linger and stay.

It is the ultimate uncharted territory of our mind scape that we all want to stake claim.
Remembering and learning from our answers in our dreams is what we all hope will remain.

© Vera


Photo sources 3,4 and 10 me, Vera

All others Google free images

27 comments:

  1. Good evening dear poetess! Ah...I am finally home. I had to leave very early this morning for work and it left me no time for visiting blogs. But before dinner, here I am, enjoying this most interesting topic. Tell me if you know...but I am CONSTANTLY dreaming water. I dream I'm skimming on the surface of a vast lake or ocean. I dream I'm driving very close to the shore of an ocean, and I often have a wave that is coming toward me, but instead of being afraid, I experience a calm.

    AND....my dear dad used to play Mr. Sandman on his piano during my childhood. How I love this song.

    Thank you dear friend for everything. The chat, the thoughtfulness of the card, the PLAY. Yes, we love to play, and it's how we problem-solve, create our happiness, and try to explain our dreams.

    LOVELY POEM, and sweet dreams....

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  2. Hi Vera, Oh this is such a wonderful topic. I love to dream and remember most mine of the time. Lately, I have dreamed of my family all together having coffee around the table. I try to get there with them, but always wake up.

    I also love the song Mr. Sandman and have a recording of it by Amy Grant.
    My parents always told me the same about the Sandman.

    Wonderful poetry once again my friend.
    Wishing you many beautiful dreams!!
    Hugs

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  3. Vera, your posts are always so very informative and this one is no different! Most of the time I don't recall my dreams, but I recently had one where I went to a garage sale and they had ALL my favorite things! It was so real when I woke up, I was still excited-ha! I love your childhood memories about bedtime and your dad-so sweet! And I LOVE that pic of Max! Why wouldn't he want a perfect spot near the wine and conversation for a 'catnap'? :)
    Susan

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  4. Love this Vera. I love to remember the sweetest of my dreams. It is true a lot of life's questions get answered through our dream process. I think we can completely allow ourselves to be open to almost anything in our dreams. No distractions of life just our minds being free to wander through possibilities. Love to dream and love to remember. Thanks for this sweet post my friend.
    Kris

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  5. Oh Vera, Not to down play any of your fabulous postings BUT! i love this post, I would have to say now its my favorite, you know we have talked about our dreams and with that being said I keep a dream note book journal on what took place in the ones most vivid. i know that with my creativity things come to me in the form of dreams, I awake to listen to the remaining thought and write down with pen to paper that lays on my nightstandfor these very dreams.
    If it were not for my dreams, and the visitors in them I may not be the creative soul that I am.

    I lay many nights in thought driffing off to dream, and often reccuring dreams, settling and unsettling ones.

    The sand man song my father would often belt out, and the fear of scratchy sand in the eyes was more then one could fall asleep to. Yikes, these old fables and there meanings :)

    love your bed pillow shams, dreamy, and inspire rest.

    Yes, my dear friend this post came at a perfect time, I had a frightening dream that last couple of nights, it must be something or the someones blocking my good energy, stress of what has been in my path this last month. Shaking that off its nothing but sweet dreams from here on in.

    Now as for Max, are you sure his whiskers didnt drip into the left over glass of wine? drifting him off to la, la land dreaming of his next glass ? :))
    I love that you snapped a foto of max in slumber on the counter in deep dream land, its a perfect shot for this dream post. You my dear friend write like none other.Poetically and Dreamy :)

    Sweet Dreams.

    xoxo
    Dore

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  6. GREAT post, Vera. I am a dreamer, too, and often jot down dreams as soon as I awake. I have had a couple of recurring dreams in my life that repeat several times a year. And there is one dream that I can never quite remember that will even tug at the edges of my mind once in a while during the day.

    One of my granddaughters had "night terror" dreams from when she was little until she was about 8 or 9 years old. Her eyes would open but she would still be dreaming. It was horrible and we felt so bad for her and nothing to be done but wait them out.

    A wonderful, reflective poem at the end of your post, Vera. Nicely done. Hope y9u have a great night- xo Diana

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  7. I quit dreaming several years ago. My doctor says I probably still dream...just forget it .....
    Mr. Sweet solves most of his problems in dreams. Our son is sooo impressed with his dad's ability. They can have a problem with something they are building and Mr. Sweet goes to sleep that night and when he wakes up, he has the problem solved. Beats all I've ever seen.
    This is a beautiful post...Mr. Sandman was a favorite song in the 50's and it always brings back memories of the fella I was dating during that time. I LOVE olden memories and olden songs.

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  8. I totally agree with the above comments. One of your best posts. Loved it.

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  9. Another lovely post, Vera. I never knew that our bodies burn more calories sleeping than awake! I do love dreams and when I am creating, this is where the very best ideas come from.

    You always write the most wonderful posts!
    Hugs,
    Lin

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  10. I love when I have good, happy dreams and remember them…such a wonderful post!

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  11. How I love this post Vera!!! You made my day by posting the Cordette's video!!! What a wonderful thing to learn that your dad sang that song at bedtime too. My dad did that very thing too and I would go to sleep humming it to myself even as a very young child. I also LOVE bedtime to this day and make my bed quite the nest with tons of down pillows. I barely leave room for Dale :)))))))
    I always love your prose and the way you write inspired me!
    I hope your day is wonderful my dear...

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  12. This is such an interesting and informative post, Vera. First, I do sleep a lot, I don't feel good unless I've had 10 hours of sleep...no kidding! If I don't get that one night, I'm sure to make up for it the next. But I also do a lot of tossing and turning, so maybe it actually comes out to be 8 hours. I dream rarely, but I do have a recurring dream that I often try to figure out. And I really do agree with you on how children have nightmares.

    I'm with June...My bedroom is my sanctuary and I do all my reading and relaxing in a big cozy bed with tons of pillows and my two pups along side me! :)

    Jane xx

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  13. I learned so much about dreams and dreaming from this interesting post, Vera. I love that we burn more calories while sleeping because I need my sleep...more than my husband. Here I thought I was thin because of the stress in my life...maybe it's because I like my sleep. :-)
    Also love the thoughts on "let's sleep on it." That's such a valuable exercise.
    Great post!!
    Mary Alice

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  14. Good evening dear friend!

    Thank you for coming by again! Now your dream interpretation sounds just about right! I always wake up feeling as if I'm trying to sort out a challenge or rather, trying to go deeper into my goals. Skimming the surface of the water is always the theme of my dreams! WOW! You hit it on the head. I wonder what I'll dream tonight! And I too am looking forward to a magical Christmas event. I can't wait!!!!

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  15. Steve and I judge each new restaurant by the dreams we have that night. If we have exotic, wild, crazy fun dreams, then we go back!

    Lulu sleeps in a crate covered with a quilt at night so we don't see her dreaming, but our old dog slept on our bed. She would be running in her sleep chasing birds or other dogs. It was so fun to watch her dream.

    Steve and I both still have the recurring dream that it is the end of the semester and we forgot to go to class at all and now it is the final exam. And I have the classroom dream that I didn't make it to class and forgot to call in to tell anyone.

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  16. Hi Vera, I love visiting this post again and reading your poetry is a plus!!

    Thank you for stopping by today and your kind comment. Your visits always bless me.
    XO

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  17. Vera, this is so interesting! I dream in color too and always wish I could remember more of my dreams. Some I do! :) I always wonder the "how & why" one dreams of people and places that you haven't thought of in eons. I retired in Jan,'03 and I dreamed about work for years! Those probably should be called nightmares. :) It still happens occasionally. Thanks so much for sharing!

    xo
    Pat

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  18. Vera as a very active dreamer and seeker of the meanings of dreams...I love this post. You are such a talent and draw me in every time! I love the song from the Mamas and Papas...Dream a little dream of me! Sweet dreams!

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  19. I wish I didn't dream as much as I do, Vera. I dream sagas and wake up exhausted- frequently. They are very detailed and in color so I call them my movie dreams. I've had a recurrent dream for many years that drives me nuts. I'm driving and I turn down a street to the most wonderful little shops. They know me there and it seems like I have been there many times. I'm always so happy that I have found it again. When I wake up I'm not sure if I dreamed it or not, but I'll always be on the quest to find that street. Honestly, it freaks me out! Maybe I went there in another life. I get the strangest feelings of deja vu.
    I so enjoyed your post...always do! You write beautifully.

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  20. Vera, this hole post is a dream!! And the girl on the wing made my day - the horse is freedom. I studied Psychologie and took classes in Freuds Dream Interpretations, so I really enjoyed this post from top to bottom. And you gave so much love in this, so much work. I really like your blog, it is such a special one, giving sooo much.
    In one word: Dreamy - a biiiiiig Hug and a biiiig Thank You, Vera, Méa

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  21. Dear Vera,
    Mr. Sandman.... How I love this song. Every time I hear it I think of my beloved mom and dad... This song would echo through our home when I was a young child..
    I believe this is my favorite post of yours... Thank you for all the information.
    I guess I need to do a little research.. With the exception of a few dreams after the passing of my beloved, I have not had any recall of dreams in over 15 years. Very odd, don't you think?

    As for dear little Max... I loved your explanation... It gave me a giggle..
    I would not have disturbed him either.. He looks like he is in dream land.
    I loved your poem Vera.
    I hope you are feeling a little better...
    Sending you a warm hug.
    Penny

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  22. I love that song, too. I don't remember many dreams. Just a few bad ones that have reoccurred....things from my childhood.
    Good post, with lots of interesting information.
    Have a great weekend, Vera.
    Debbie
    xo

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  23. Dear Vera,
    Thank you for your visit and encouraging words about Oliver....It means a lot to me.
    Yes, I am taking it slow, I hope you are feeling better..
    Wishing you a beautiful day
    blessings,
    Penny

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  24. Good afternoon dear friend! I see you came by Nowhere and are you ever welcomed to join in the fun! Get your best parka out because it's cold out there in Nowhere (and in Minneapolis!)

    Are you enjoying the change of seasons? Are you working on your theatre? I am playing with ideas and making many changes but that's the fun part: experimenting!

    Hugs to you from Nowhere AND the Twin Cities! Anita

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  25. I always learn so much when I visit you, Vera. Can I also mention how articulate you are. Just from reading your posts and comments, it is obvious that you are a poet. Happy Thanksgiving to you!

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  26. Oh Vera, I return to thank you for the grace and beauty you add to my life. As for your visit to my post on the book, you can imagine after my day of giving to the needed homeless, I was so surprised to find that an early arrival of Fifi's new book Prairie-Style Weddings would add to how grateful I am to be included in her creative journey in as to inspiring the prairie vibe in a relaxed rustic ceremonious book, that inspires all things rustically salvage for any event.

    You know I have to mention, your wood seltzer box. It would be a box I would not turn away if it were my find, and it might end up with a Christmas tree out of it for the holidays...... Just saying!! Will we be seeing a tree of sorts displayed somewhere in your home this season of peace and calm.

    See you soon beautiful.
    Xx
    Bisous

    angel kisses to you.

    ~ Doré

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  27. The cherub and that crown ---- I'm swooning. I just discovered your blog and will spend this morning sipping tea and reading your delightful posts.

    Happy Holidays...

    Angie

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