Rising Up

Hello all 6 of my readers - haha! Which one of you is a dream analyzer? (Actually I know which one is and I look forward to your comments).

Last night (this morning if you want to be technical about it), I had a dream that I was on my way home from school (I was in school) and had a decision about which way to get there. I chose to go on the train, even though I was alone and unsure. As soon as I got on the train, a man came up to me and picked me up by the shirt with one hand and raised me up. High up, above him, above everyone else on the train. I was petrified because this guy scared me. It seemed to me that the other people on the train were scared of him too, but no one did anything to stop him. He put me down almost as fast as he picked me up though. I went to my seat where I was not bothered again, but comforted by a friend I haven't seen in a while (for those in the know Cackman - go figure).

I awoke from that dream to start my day, but I've wondered about it all day long. What did mean? Was this person trying to scare me? Is there someone out there who does scare me? Why did he let me go? Why was Cackman comforting me?

After much thought, this is what I think I got from it (but would love to hear from you too). These past six months have been a huge time of change for me. Relationships have changed, some have ended completely, some have grown out of a comfort of loss, there's been death, new relationships, a rediscovery of my religion, lots of things.

Last night I watched as my beloved Miami Heat lost the NBA Championship to the Dallas Mavericks. Those who know me know that I have been a Heat fan for years - going to games since the '88-'89 opening season with Rony Seikaly, Jon Sunvold and Ron Rothstein, had season tickets for a number of years, met Tim Hardaway (twice) and had a crush on 12th man off the bench Marty Conlon. Well last night as the Heat lost, I heard the taunts from many a Mavericks fan (and some who were not).

To me the rivalary was fun. It's just a game after all, the results of which weren't going to change my life. However, I felt like some of the remarks were just down right mean. I began to take what people were saying to me seriously. After a weekend that included other disappointments which I had no control over, these remarks would have put me over the edge. They would have added to the disappointment of being let down and maybe sent me reeling.

I am proud to say that they didn't. I think that's what my dream was about. I think it was God lifting me up as if to say "look how far you've come." Reminding me that I can rise above my disappointments on this crazy train of a life.