Ceremonial dream of a reunion
Last night I had one of the strangest dreams - I was reunited with my paternal grandparents. In real life, they've been deceased for thirteen and fourteen years, but I still have memories of them from my early childhood. I had come to understand that I was going to meet Gido and Tètée. (I do not know how to spell these words in English; I suppose they are Arabic words), but when I would, it would be for a short period of time with the knowledge that they would leave again for good. We met at a ceremony (I don't remember what kind of ceremony it was), which I made a special effort to dress nicely for. My grandfather was 98 when he died and it was also eight days before my seventh birthday. At that time in October 1991, I was hoping that he would make it to my seventh birthday party despite him being in the hospital for months. He had come to my sixth, so it seemed perfectly logical that he would be at my next party. To see him right there at the ceremony was a complete surprise. He didn't look like he had aged any further in the past thirteen years, yet he was frail. He was friendly, asking general questions about my life. I answered, slightly overly enthusiastic. My grandmother, on the other hand was silent but smiling. (Mind you, she only spoke French and Arabic so it was difficult for her and I to converse.) It was as if they had never died, but had disappeared for over a decade. After the ceremony, they vanished.
Throughout my life, my grandparents on both sides of the family never really had a strong impact on the way I grew up. My father's parents died while I was young, yet there are some memories that are seemingly potent. I used to visit them every two weeks whether it be at the nursing home or the hospital in Hamilton, and then it was all over. My mother's parents lived in Hong Kong so I rarely saw them.
I don't know why I had these dreams. This is the second time this year I have dreamt of my father's parents, and more and more I ask myself... what if? What if they were around? But they're not, and that will never be the case. Either way, it keeps me wondering what could have happened in terms of the latter years of my childhood.
I like these having these types of dreams. I like revisiting these possibilities. The photo albums and the video tapes are what I have left aside from my memories, but I'll take what I can.
Throughout my life, my grandparents on both sides of the family never really had a strong impact on the way I grew up. My father's parents died while I was young, yet there are some memories that are seemingly potent. I used to visit them every two weeks whether it be at the nursing home or the hospital in Hamilton, and then it was all over. My mother's parents lived in Hong Kong so I rarely saw them.
I don't know why I had these dreams. This is the second time this year I have dreamt of my father's parents, and more and more I ask myself... what if? What if they were around? But they're not, and that will never be the case. Either way, it keeps me wondering what could have happened in terms of the latter years of my childhood.
I like these having these types of dreams. I like revisiting these possibilities. The photo albums and the video tapes are what I have left aside from my memories, but I'll take what I can.