Where Do You Go When You Sleep?

When I drift off to sleep at night, I often find myself mentally traveling to the past. Usually I time travel to visit people and places I haven't thought of in years. I don't mean this literally. Well, kind of. I can distinctly see the (my?) surroundings I saw then, but, sometimes there are holes in the picture. I am aware that these thoughts came seemingly out of nowhere, and that they are not reality anymore. It's a half dream-like state, only it was once reality.

When my brain latches onto these images, I wake up and start thinking about the things that came unbidden into my mind. Sometimes I like to relive a memory in as much detail as I possibly can. I mentally walk myself through the scene once again, twelve or more years later. Often one image turns into many related images that have slept hidden for years. These are not horrible, evil moments, but simply moments. Sometimes I can see clearly now what I missed then, more often I just see how pathetically clueless I was (and may still be).

Usually when I have a particularly strong image emerge, I write about it. Due to logistics, and a half hearted hope that if I stay in bed I will actually sleep, I haven't been writing them out lately. But I want to. Oh, how my fingers itch to release the hazy, half formed thoughts, but clear images in my mind.