AWAKE!

Dreams are more than random fragments spun from our waking life. Pay them proper respect and they will reward you with a greater understanding of yourself and your world as you see it. What our dreams are, are only interpretation of what we perceived but somehow it could be the other way around but whatever our dream is, it is still a dream. What matter most is on how we live life while we are awake and note dreaming. Here's a good composition of our first "I made this!" literary contest finalist.

AWAKE

by: Nhur Huddin Daud

As I pass to the shimmering lights, my eyes feels a little bit dizzy, I could see but not entirely clear as if everything was covered by a mist.

Though I could hear the voices far behind the mist still, there’s no sight of anybody as I look around eagerly and anxiously. Tears started to fall through my eyes unconsciously, as I wipe them out, then suddenly, I felt this feeling I myself couldn’t understand.

I thought it was just my mind going hysterical since I haven’t sighted any living soul for an hour of search. But then,

dub2x…dub2x…dub2x...,

my heart pumps again and again as if I am in horror movie where the actor is about to meet the villain; the monster; the boogeyman in his life; the horror in his nightmare.

I couldn’t move my body for the first time; my feet froze on the ground as if it was locked; and as I was trying to fight the force, the gravitation force that pulls me on the ground I couldn’t find any sense out of it.

As I search through the misty air, horrified like an elk waiting to be eaten by his prey. But then again,

dub2x…dub2x…dub2x…,

This time it grows stronger and stronger as I’ve tried to fight some air through my lungs. The more I struggle to breathe the more it ran out of me. My lips grew numb and from time to time it goes through my entire body like an electric current passing through my veins knocking down all my senses.

My eyes went blurry I couldn’t see anything at all, plus, with the tears that is enormously flowing down to my cheeks without any reason- only fear. Then suddenly, flashes of images corrupted my mind, things that I already know, things that I’ve seen already, like I was in the point where a human soul is about to die, like those on the movies, and the images that I am seeing now where my memories for a long time.

I’d had more than my fair share of near-death experiences; it wasn’t something you really loved, though, or get really used to. But this time it seemed oddly inevitable facing death the second time around, still, it seemed a lot different from the others.

Like I was really destined for this disaster, I’d escaped death again and again, but it kept coming back for me and I couldn’t understand, couldn’t make any sense of what was happening.

As I was about to break, thinking that it’s all over for me, that my time has come, the Armageddon of my own world. I knew I had to fight, to do something, to not let the darkness take me away from the people I love and cherish the most.

My entire body was in its solemn state, like I was just lying there on my bed like a dead meat. My body tried to feel the outside pain; wishing somebody to spank at me, or even kick the hell out of me. I would settle for that if it only means to wake me or bring back my sub-conscious to my consciousness.

But then again, there was nothing out there, I was alone, I am alone… struggling for my life every beat of a second. Like the baby in womb of their mother. A child so delicate that only a madman would dared to hurt. A child so special that even angels cannot resist protecting. I was on that point, helpless, unarmed, and pitiful.

Pain… pain… was the only thing that matters for me at that time, if I could just feel the pain. Yet there I was; sucked again and again into the blackness, making it much harder to keep up with reality.

I tried to separate them in my mind, the non-reality from the reality. The place where you could find happiness with your love ones compared to the non-reality wherein everything seems to be black.

The darkness had taken over me, as the light through my head slowly faded, and there I was; sleeping peacefully like a child waiting to be placed at his crib.

Voices this time, shouting, as the hope came back. “Wake-up, Wake-up”. Alas! The word seems familiar to my unconscious mind. Am I dreaming? Is this a nightmare? Or was my unconscious mind creating these voices for me? What should I do?

I was confused at that time. I didn’t know what to do, didn’t know what to react. I tried to feel my heart, to find it, but I was so lost inside my own body. I couldn’t feel the things that I should, I couldn’t feel my arms, my legs, not even my tongue is capable of speaking, and nothing felt in the right place at that time.

As I was trying to open my weary eyes, trying to gain control over my restless body, and then there was light. That light that I have been craving for, for the past few seconds of my existence.

As my eyes struggled to adjust, suddenly everything was so clear to me.

Then I heard footsteps coming fast right at me… my mom, my dad, my brother and sisters were right at my side in a second.

Then there was silence for a moment… and then, there were tears of sadness and a loud sound of agony and relief as I tried to catch my breath thinking about my unforgettable nightmare that tried to elude me and separate me from my family.

Then finally I realized I am already awake. (end)

Author's Footnote:

This story is based on my actual experience about having a bad dream or a nightmare. I used to sleep without even praying that is why I really felt bad that time when I am already awake. For many weeks, I thought I was having a phobia in sleeping since I prefer not to sleep at all especially when I am alone in my room. Though for others who have experienced it, and for those who haven’t this story that i wrote myself may not be as interesting for them to read.

Yet, for me still I prefer to share it to some, so that we can reprimand ourselves that we are not alone in this world, that God did not create human beings alone, that there still other forces that lurks every night and day. Watching us, monitoring us, until such time they can find a perfect chance to elude us and tempt us to do evil things. These evil forces will do everything there powers can reach to led us to our doom, astray us to path that God has given to us. So let us be repentant and ask protection to our dear LORD so that we may be able to save ourselves from the worldly things and blasphemous doings.