Wrong Turn

In my dream, I struck a road running along the grassy rim of an escarpment overlooking a beautiful valley.  The valley was expansive and filled with open ranches and cloud-shadows roaming through pastures.  I had two options.  Turn right and climb to a higher view.  Turn left and descend a long, thinning road into the valley.

I turned right.  Driving along, I found my eyes continually drawn to the valley.  For that reason, I didn’t notice, until too late, that I had driven upon private property.  I discovered myself wheeling around in a wide driveway immediately below an extensive mansion with an incredible façade of windows.

This is where reality unplugs.

Upon turning around and heading back, I found myself inside the mansion.  An elderly man appeared as I tried to navigate around a heavy wooden table and exit through a spacious room on the passenger side.

“He’s right here!” the man yelled. 

A younger woman—obviously the man’s wife—strode in from another room.

I drew to a stop, now finding myself just standing there without a car.  I allowed the couple to approach me.

“Didn’t you see the sign?” the man asked.

“Nope,” I said.  “The drive was so beautiful, I just…drove without paying attention.”

I apologized abundantly.  I gave them my name and told them where I lived.  After much conversation, they agreed to let me go with a warning.  “Someday,” the old man cautioned, “we are going to repay you by showing up inside your house, unannounced.”

The dream pretty much faded as I walked out of their house.

Two things.

First, I can totally see myself driving right through a mansion because I am distracted by gawking around.  Second, I was fairly guarded when I wandered out to the kitchen from my bedroom this morning.  What if I bumped into that couple?

--Mitchell Hegman