You’ve been dreaming as long as you’ve been living. Restful or restless, the visions, images, thoughts and ideas that come to you at night play a major role in how we function during our waking hours.

Dreams are a part of living and, for many of us, a reason to live.
 
We all know what it is like to dream — a natural function, all done during the tranquil hours where the body is immobile — but few take the time to capitalize on the train of thought that flows through the mind while the rest of you is motionless.
 
Your mind is a flurry while sleeping, recounting people; places, scenes and faces; deep thought and deeper fears are all a part of your dreaming state. Whether frustration-fuelled or alcohol-kissed, thoughts travel far and wide throughout the mist. Never is the mind still. Research indicates the mind may be more active, and more powerful, during sleep than it is while you are awake.

We are always thinking while we dream, but how often do we take the time to consider how we dream, or why? Although it is an activity we partake in for more than a third of our lives, do we ever give sleep (or the act or art of sleeping) our undivided attention?

Through the month of March (with its longer, cooler nights and shorter winter days), Mythos & Marginalia will take a closer look at both sleep and dreams. We are flying by the seat of our pyjamas, essentially, taking our pulse, letting thoughts flow and dreams escape, and trying to uncover what happens while we are, literally, tucked under the covers.

I’ve invited submissions from friends, interested to see what they are dreaming on, or about. . . or of. Panels of this page will open up for discussion, analysis, or whatever comes to life. Please check back daily, or chip in if you are moved. Click the mail icon on the right side and tell me something.

I am not an expert, but I do have a lot of experience both sleeping and dreaming. I have been (or maybe still am) a night owl, and know the creativity inspired by darkness, but also while you sleep.

I’m also not here to tell you how to dream, or what to dream about, but if living your dreams is a destination, you need a road map to get there. DreamEscapes may help you set your path. Pack lightly and leave plenty of room for recovery and discovery.

Tell me your sleepless thoughts, darkest dreams, or the wonder (or what you wonder) of the night.
j.g.lewis@mythosandmarginal.com

j.g. lewis