my dreams

i've had weird dreams all my life, and on a regular basis, people die in them. i've had countless dreams where my dog died. every time, i called home to check, but he was always fighting fit. several times, i dreamt someone in my family (generally my mother) died. i didn't need to call to check, of course, as i knew my the phone would ring if it ever were true. but then, one day i once again dreamt my mother was dying. except this time she was fighting cancer again and i knew things were not going as they should. i was seriously considering flying home at the time.

i woke up and couldn't shake the dream. then the phone rang. it's true that i was in the bathroom at the time, but if i'm totally honest, i could have got it at the last ring. but i didn't. i reckoned that if it was important, it would ring again, or my mobile would. so i just stood there and waited. then i remembered my mobile was off, so i rushed to switch it on. and waited some more. after a few minutes, i went back to whatever i was doing. and the phone rang again.

i put on a happy voice when i picked up the receiver, and i cannot explain how relieved i was when i heard my godfather's voice. until he told me he had bad news. when my father failed to reach me, he called him. we were in the same city. this time, my mother had died. right about when i was dreaming she was.

i've had several such dreams since then, and whilst i know not to worry too much about them. but i had another one the other day, and it felt very real. and i've just been wondering it. do other people regularly dream people around them die?