Dream a little dream...

I took my car in for service at the dealership about a week ago. I received such great service. I got a cheerful reception, coffee and an offer for courtesy transportation to my office. Exactly what I needed. I boarded the courtesy transportation van...and so did two other people. Where to?, the driver asked us. We each had to go in different directions. I was going to be the last one dropped off. Oh no! I had nothing with me...no book, no notebook, no tablet. What was I supposed to do during the trip?

I stared out the window. But instead of thinking about everything I had to do or seeing the other cars stuck in the same traffic jam, I started seeing buildings I never notice, landscapes I never see. Before I realized what was happening, I was daydreaming. What a treat.

Because our lives are so packed with activity, we seldom take time to dream. I meditate, contemplate, reflect and pray very purposefully, but daydreaming is just something I don't get to do very often. Do you? Daydreaming allows us to build the vision of what we want for ourselves, to explore what is possible, to exercise dormant parts of our brain, to nurture our imagination. Because we can only really focus on one thought at a time, daydreaming gives us a break from what troubles us. Dreaming on purpose strengthens us and stirs up our creativity. In a daydream we can try out ideas. We can also feel something different, sort of like trying out feelings. Moreover, daydreaming helps us figure out our preferences, what excites us and what makes us happy.

During the ride back from the dealership, I took elements of the present moment to build a dream. When I returned to my office I was relaxed and in a good mood. I was also excited about new ideas I came up with, ideas I am now developing into projects.

How about we take some time today to dream? What could we unravel? What great idea could we come up with? What if we came up with nothing...but only a few moments of enjoyment, serenity and entertainment? Wouldn't that be enough...to dream a little dream?