A dream last night

I had a dream last night, very clear, that I was going home. Home to the house we knew by that name from 1960 to 2000, 75 Eastern Avenue in Lynn. I don’t know where I was coming from in the dream, but I knew I had to walk the journey, step after step.

There was a storm on as I walked, a rainstorm. Heavy. Unrelenting. At first there was water on the ground at my feet. Later as I high as my knees, then waist, then chest.

As the dream ended I was descending toward Eastern Avenue immediately west of the railroad bridge that passes over the road near home. There the depth of water suddenly became such that I had to jump to get above it to take a breath, then descend into the darkness to move forward, then upward again.

For the first time, I wondered if I could actually make it. If I could get there. If I could reach home.

Consider this: “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Paul’s letter to the Romans 6:3-4)

And consider this:

“Then he brought me back to the entrance of the temple; there, water was flowing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east); and the water was flowing down from below the south end of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar. Then he brought me out by way of the north gate, and led me around on the outside to the outer gate that faces toward the east; and the water was coming out on the south side.

Going on eastward with a cord in his hand, the man measured one thousand cubits, and then led me through the water; and it was ankle-deep. Again he measured one thousand, and led me through the water; and it was knee-deep. Again he measured one thousand, and led me through the water; and it was up to the waist. Again he measured one thousand, and it was a river that I could not cross, for the water had risen; it was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be crossed. He said to me, “Mortal, have you seen this?”