i don't usually dream on vacation, something about being in a different bed. it's also something about not needing to escape while you're on vacation.
my dream comes past the mid-point of the night- just before first light. the dream is subtle and leaves the after taste of being memory.
we are all sitting together. not everyone, just the people of my vacation. my vacation is peaceful and intimate. the house is big and loud and in a constant state of flux. most people don't make the cut for my vacation, they're just someone i see while on vacation. i don't worry about the difference knowing that the at-large wouldn't understand anyways.
for once it's quiet as we are all together, and joking can be put on the back-burner. it's enough to feel the others presence. it's sunset over the water and mountains and it's not until i awake that i realize the geography is wrong. but, it's significant. it doesn't matter which way your facing when you watch the beauty of a peaceful sunset. the strength of our dreams can change which way the world turns.
as it starts to darken into dusk, talk returns; talk of swimming the night away in fields of phosphorescent algae. i stay quiet and relish in the moment contentedly grinning. it doesn't occur to me till i'm out of the dream that you grin when you're happy and reserve smiles for when you're being nice.
without saying a word, i point to the water where one, then another, then another, humpback whales, then another, rise out of the water, then another, to spray water and breathe and play. everyone sees, then another, and oohs and ahhs, while a few of us point. the last one to rise is huge and ancient, coming half-way out of the water, turning onto his right-side while still managing a spectacular tail splash.
in the waking morning it occurs to me that the whales are representations, but to me it's enough that they are whales.
