We are each to each other dreams of others’ dreams

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We are our dreams of ourselves, souls by gleams,
And each to each other dreams of others’ dreams.

Fernando Pessoa


Last night, I had a dream that felt quite ordinary. It featured various family members, some still alive and others who have passed away. My father played a central role in the dream, as he was attempting to evade a lender. The scenario was all too familiar, mirroring a recurring theme from my childhood.

At a certain point, I woke up, and with each passing moment, more details of the dream flooded back into my consciousness. It took me a few seconds to fully grasp that it had been nothing more than a dream. I didn’t experience a particular surge of joy or sadness at its conclusion, but I was mildly surprised that I woke up from it. I decided to jot down a few notes about the dream in my journal before carrying on with my day.

In this dream, everyone, including myself, was a creation of my own mind. As soon as I woke up, we all ceased to exist. There was no dramatic climax before my awakening, nor was there any fear. No one made an effort to extend the dream, allowing us to linger in that alternate reality a bit longer.

This is how I personally perceive life, not only my own but also that of others—an intricate mental process. Whose process it is, I cannot say for certain. Perhaps we are all part of a dream, one crafted by a higher power, and it’s our responsibility to make it a good one within the constraints of our own agency.

Click on the FEATURED IMAGE below to see a larger version. It is double exposure. The path is in the tropics, where humidity and the trees often filter the light in the way that it is portrayed. The person walking is me, my photo was taken at a different occasion in a different place.

Fernando Pessoa was one of the most significant literary figures of the 20th century. He spent part of his life in South Africa and for that reason he was fluent in English, and wrote a number of poems in this language. Most of his contributions are in Portuguese, but he was also fluent and wrote poems in French. If you want to learn more about Fernando Pessoa, here is a Wikipedia link.

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18 responses to “We are each to each other dreams of others’ dreams”

  1. Florin Avatar

    I love that photo. I am also quite interested in dreams as vehicles of storytelling and meaning. I think they are often facing us with parts of our self-narratives that we cannot or would not accept.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Alessandra Chaves Avatar

      It is possible. Freud built an almost encyclopedic list of dream symbolism, his assumption being that we dream of what we repress and we dream in code.

      Liked by 1 person

  2. ddaveleft1 Avatar

    Interesting. That’s the way my dreams go, not dramatic, just a story.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Alessandra Chaves Avatar

      Sometimes I have a nightmare too.

      Like

  3. howg2211 Avatar
    howg2211

    I lov the mystery in the featured image! I wish I could remember my dreams. It’s very rare that I do. Your last comment is reminiscent of the theory that we might all be simulations in a computer game or algorithm. I find the idea of possible alternative universes where other outcomes exist or the fact that this may not be the first or last universe iteration since the Big Bang quite interesting as well.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Alessandra Chaves Avatar

      Yes, I’ve been interested in these theories myself for a while. I recall at my age my mother became more religious and came closer to the Catholic Church. As I age I also seek more to comprehend the nature of reality. Poetry sometimes is a little door to it. Metaphysics can be another door.

      Like

      1. howg2211 Avatar
        howg2211

        My source of trying to comprehend is reading about quantum mechanics (from an explanatory and theoretical viewpoint, meaning without the math). The more I age the less I feel any closeness to religion however.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Alessandra Chaves Avatar

        Religion certainly causes its share of problems.

        Like

      3. howg2211 Avatar
        howg2211

        A hell of a lot of people have been killed because of it throughout history. And for what?

        Like

      4. Alessandra Chaves Avatar

        “Fear and Trembling”

        Like

  4. Steve Schwartzman Avatar

    The double exposure is a change from your usual fare. No reason not to step into a different dimension every now and then, even as we do in dreams as often as every night.

    On that topic, you may well know these lines by Pedro Calderón de la Barca from 1635:

    ¿Qué es la vida? Un frenesí.
    ¿Qué es la vida? Una ilusión,
    una sombra, una ficción,
    y el mayor bien es pequeño;
    que toda la vida es sueño,
    y los sueños, sueños son.

    I was going to hunt for the presumed Portuguese original of the Fernando Pessoa couplet, which surprised my by rhyming in English. Then I got to your last paragraph and realized Pessoa probably wrote those lines in English.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Alessandra Chaves Avatar

      The poem is part of Pessoas’ series “ English poems” . I also like the one you shared from Calderón de la Barca.

      Like

  5. shoreacres Avatar

    I’ve been fascinated by Pessoa for some time, and even have written about him. Like the reality your photo represents, his poetry always seems to me to have a ‘surplus of meaning’ floating about: rather like the ephemeral person in your photo.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Alessandra Chaves Avatar

      Fernando Pessoa is a fascinating poet.

      Liked by 1 person

  6. Steve Gingold Avatar

    This is outside of your usual “box” and a very fascinating and moving image, Alessandra. I envy your ability to remember your dreams. About the only ones I remember are my nightmares which happily are few and far between. There is one person in particular who is no longer among the living that I wish would visit me in a dream.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Alessandra Chaves Avatar

      I remember a little right when I wake up, but after a few hours I no longer remember a dream unless I write it down. A lot of my dreams seem like processing daily events, but a few will reach out in the past or fulfill a wish such as dream with deceased family members. It’s spooky when I have those nightmares that when I wake up I’m so relieved it was a nightmare.

      Liked by 1 person

  7. tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles Avatar

    I so enjoyed reading your musings about your dream and about the dream itself! The photo is amazing and is the perfect accompanying photo to this post!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Alessandra Chaves Avatar

      Thank you!

      Liked by 1 person

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