a new life

I was living on Earth in 4000 AD. The planet had undergone a monumental shift - a death and rebirth - which had occurred sometime in the 21st Century, not too far in the future. I was the same age I am now. Earth seemed, somehow, smaller and more industrial, even fabricated, in part. An apocalypse had occurred. I heard stories of how, slowly, survivors found one another, crawled out from where they had been near-buried, and started again, doing their best to reestablish humanity's earlier learnings. They tried to remember the truths, the lessons, but it seemed everything was slightly askew. Their ways of doing things resembled life before; but, with the same foundations, they had created new pathways, new patterns, new cultures. New ways to interact with one another. I had a friend - a woman older than me and much taller and finer, who seemed to serve as a guide. It was evident I was new here; woken, perhaps, from an imposed sleep. Had I too survived and been so severely damaged I was in an induced state of slumber until that time it was safe to be alive? I was out of place. My way of being in the world was not the new way of being. Everyone seemed to have an innate knowledge of what to do, the order of things. My friend and I were talking about family. I told her I had had a beautiful family - a mother, a father, a sister and brother, and extended family, all so dear to me. I ached with longing to see them again and regretted time spent apart. The woman asked if I had had children and if I would like to begin my family anew. I doubted, at my age, it was likely, but she assured me it was indeed probable, and encouraged me to waste no time - to fall pregnant that very day. I agreed and we went to a particular shop that sold herbs, spices and other rarities, stocked in vast jars on the shelves. Rather than talking to the shop owner directly, the woman pointed to various jars, commenting on the contents. It was a code, a message to the shopkeeper, telling her why we were there. The shop owner understood and looked at me intently, then ushered me inside and made me comfortable at the rear of the shop. She fetched tea then opened a store cupboard; an unusual man appeared and approached me. He was, perhaps, of Arabic descent - a handsome man with black hair, dark eyes and caramel skin - but the most unusual thing about him was the blue aura around him, which resembled the mist that might surround a genie. Rather than being sexual, I understood him to be a eunuch with special esoteric powers, who, somehow, was about to impregnate me. But, first, he read me - my mind, my body - he could read the person I was. I was not afraid; rather, I knew this was the way to begin again.

protected

Lying on the floor in a room where small children played happily and my dog nosed at a ball. A mammoth green and black python slid into the room. The children were unafraid and one child - sitting just next to me - reached out and patted the snake on the tip of its tail. Agitated, it lashed around and appeared to come straight at me. I closed my eyes, certain I would feel its mouth close around my hand or face. When I opened my eyes, my dog gazed down at me anxiously, lovingly, wagging her tail. The children told me she had launched at the snake and finished it before it could hurt me.

rabbit and snake

We were staying in her parents' home while they were away. Everything was tidy and the house had obviously been cleaned, but now there were droppings; little brown mounds spread across the floor and even up the walls. A plastic bag under a table moved and I picked it up, my hand firm around the opening. Inside, a small grey rabbit with a white chest and tail writhed - the culprit. I went to walk to the door to release the rabbit outside, but my friend stopped me, telling me the rabbit was a pest. I didn't want to hurt the rabbit; it was so sweet. Or was it? Suddenly, the rabbit changed. Its face distorted, its eyes bulged and its teeth became big, sharp rectangles that nipped at my hand through the bag. I dropped the bag and the rabbit disappeared.
Next, in the same room, a group of people gathered. They sat on available furniture and, where chairs, lounges or beds weren't available, they sat on the floor or on the shelves. A giant black and lemon python slithered into the room and coiled its body against a wall of the room. I went to the corner furthest from the snake and sat under a shelf on the floor. The python, seemingly serene, followed me and relocated its heavy body to the shelf above my head. No one else seemed bothered by its presence, but I felt unsafe, sitting directly under it. I slowly, and with deliberate calm, gathered my bag and went to leave. Again the python followed me. It slithered alongside me and raised its head up to sniff my bag. I could see - feel - soft hair growing out of its nose, brushing my hand. I awoke and my dog, Billie Bear, was softly sniffing my hand. Relief!