Tag Archive for: Nostalgia

A few weeks ago I dreamed my dad visited me while I was asleep in bed.  I opened my eyes but before I could say a word, he crept out, not wanting to awake me.  He wore his old work jacket and Wisconsin winter cap which I hadn’t seen it in years.  It reminded me of  times when we shoveled snow together, built snow forts, or went tobagonning.

Then I awoke from this dream.  It was just a brief moment of Dad, but it brought his smile, his warmth, and his thoughtfulness. 

First thing on my schedule that morning was a dentist appointment.  As I sat in the reclining chair, the first strains of Christmas music filled the room.  Tears filled my eyes.  With Dad, Christmas was his favorite thing next to church!  As a youth Dad would ask me to play Christmas music on the piano, or they’d be heard all through the house from the record player or radio.

In his later years, he had us set his transistor on KOIT, the station that played nonstop Christmas carols from December 1 – 25.  He listened to it constantly.   If the knob got bumped, we’d get a call to come over and “fix his broken radio.”  Bob or I would become an immediate hero when we did. 

So there I sat in the dentist’s office, the first time I heard a Christmas carol without my dad by my side.  Tears were in my eyes. Maryanne, the hygenist, saw me and patted my arm.  “Just want to let you know that I thought of you and your dad on All Soul’s Day.  I said a special prayer for him,” she said. 

That did it.  We hugged and I shared my recent dream with her.  

The song lyrics at that moment?  

” . . . I’ll see you in my dreams.”

Writing Prompt:  1. When have coincidences occurred in your life?  Write about a special one that holds meaning for you.

2.  Keep a journal of these interesting moments of serendipity. 

3.  Keep a dream journal.  Try to figure out what symbols that reoccurr in your dreams can represent in your life.  If you have dreams that happen again and again, your inner self is trying to give you a message.

When you were young, how did you envision yourself all grown up? When I was an eighth grader in Wisconsin, our English class assignment was to interview each other and write up the interviews about our classmates in the far-away future space age . . . the year 2000. Someone made a booklet cover with a space ship flying among the stars and we were all set.

As for the article about me, I was to be a teacher, with a terrier, who lived in California.

Although I no longer teach, I did for many years. And the photo of my Yorkshire Terrier, Zoie, is at the right and also on my website. I came to California for college and never left, except for visits to the Midwest.

But as a child I never dared dream I’d be a children’s book writer. That wasn’t an available choice. The closest thing offered on the guidance counselor’s form was “newspaper reporter,” which was of no interest to me.

Fortunately today, young people see authors in classrooms, bookstores, and online as examples of what they may become. There are contests and opportunities for them to become published in magazines, newspapers and even books. So although many of us lament what has happened to the “good old days,”  opportunities have been created for writing and the arts.

1. What about YOU? Write your history of what you wanted as a youngster and how it has differed. Or has it?

2. If you are a student, what do you hope for your future? You can write about your career, or your family, the world situation, your spiritual growth or any topic you choose.

3. How can you help advance writing and creativity today? Can you sponsor a contest? A brainstorming session at your school or library? Start a book or writer’s group?