Dreaming in first gear.

Last night I had the strangest dream, although I didn’t sail away to China and no-one needed to get their laundry cleaned; I was in Venice. That’s not that unusual I suppose, but weirdly, some of my characters were in it.

Anyway, Venice also happened to look more like a tree-top jungle and I was in a jeep with no roof (like Indiana Jones), driving up and down very steep cliffs. In real life, I don’t drive—let alone know how to drive a manual—and my dream was the same. I couldn’t drive or work the gears either, but somehow I managed to get around the whole place in 1st gear!

So why don’t I drive? I don’t know. I know that it sounds crazy and I did try a couple of times, but then I never really got around to it again. However, Agatha drove and her first husband Archie was very encouraging about it.

‘“I don’t think I can really reverse at all,” I (Agatha) said doubtfully. “That car never seems to go where I think it’s going.”

“You won’t have to back,” said Archie with assurance. “You can steer quite well - that’s all that matters. If you go at a reasonable pace you’ll be all right. You know how to put the brake on.”’

After some googling, I discovered that driving dreams have something to do with challenges and how much control we feel we have over them. The Complete Dream Journal says; “When you have a driving dream, remember that the kind of car you drive and your driving skills reflect your present style of moving toward your goals.” Hmm, a roofless jeep that stays in first gear? That doesn’t sound very hopeful!

But perhaps steering, going at a reasonable pace and being capable of putting on the break, are the important things when facing a challenge? As Agatha explains, Archie was the only one who could have given her the confidence to drive. '“Of course you can do it,” he used to say, “Why shouldn’t you? If you always think you can’t do things you’ll never do them”'.

Very true. Everybody now..."Aint nothing gonna break my stride, nobody gunna hold me back, oh no, I've got to keep on moving"(thank you Matthew Wilder and google for helping me figure out who sang that song!).

But maybe Archie’s also right and reversing isn't that important? After all, in life you can't really go back unless you have a time-machine— but Cher can tell us more about that.

Christie, Agatha (2011) Agatha Christie: An autobiography. HarperCollins pp332-333.

Holloway, Gillian (2006) Complete Dream Book: Discover what your dreams reveal about you and your life. Sourcebook inc., p210.