It was a dark summer night not unlike any other. At the time I was still living in my parents house a one level ranch tucked away in the middle of three heavily wooded acres on a more rural road. I went to bed that night at my usual time of around 11:30 p.m. 

Some time had passed and I awoke from my sleep. I got up to get a drink of water. The main part of the house was dimly lit by a light left on over the kitchen sink which acted as the family night light. I walked from my bedroom and then into the near by bathroom which was on the way to the kitchen. It was during these series of steps that I realized something was amiss. My body felt atypical light and my senses seem to be keen and highly active especially for having woke up from a sound sleep. It was then that I realized I was not on a typical mission to get a glass of water.  

Feeling that I was stuck somewhere between dreaming and awake but with an unusually acute sense of my surroundings the thought came to me in that moment that these feelings were the tell tale signs of a lucid dream as I had read about. Being somewhat analytical and always one to try to extract the most out a good happening I set out to explore this new and unique experience.

I proceeded to walk thru the house. I noted the texture of the floor on my bare feet. I proceeded to go up to one of the living room walls that was constructed of mahogany paneling. I touch it and was amused by how sensitive I was to the smoothness and coolness of the wood. I was filled with great excitement of this exploration.

Firmly convinced at this point that I was experiencing a “lucid dream” I walked to the front door. Knowing that there, according to things I heard or read, was my ability to leave the confines of the house. My thought was to visit my brother who would be appreciative of such an experience. I thought how do I do this, do I open the door or do I walk thru it. Obviously I was ill prepared to project myself to some other location.  However as I was thinking thru the mechanic of projecting to another location a foreboding came over me.  I realized that beyond the wall all was dark. And for some reason this may be very apprehensive and I backed away and turned towards the kitchen. I walked thru the narrow kitchen and stopped and turned towards the kitchen sink with a window above it.  For a moment I stared into the glass noting the reflections of the elements of the kitchen.  It struck me suddenly that I was not part of the portrait being reflected in the glass.  Fear and panic swept over me and event the childish thought of vampirism flashed thru my brain as I tried to make sense of it.

The next recollection, as if immediately transported back to bed ,was that I was opening my eyes. I slowly sat up in bed my heart still pounding but feeling much relief and yet a bit of disappointment that the experience was over. Then I realized I still had a sensation of lightness, I turned and looked back towards my pillow. To my great dismay at the time I saw my body lying there, hopefully, only asleep. Panic once again set in but there was the urgent thought that I had to reconnect with my body. I quickly laid back down feeling the “other” me, for lack of better term, emerging back into my still body on the bed. I sat back up this time a little more quickly feeling better that I am now truly awake and all as it should be – so I thought.  I turned back towards my pillow once again for confirmation that all was right. I believe that my thought was a frantic “oh crap” for my body still laid on the bed. With much more speed and force I laid back down and this time recoiled and  bolted upright. All felt right and although exhausted I knew things were back to a normal state. I decided not to go after that glass of water choosing to lay there for some time contemplated the events until I finally fell asleep. And glad to later awake again to the natural light of the day.

Over breakfast the next morning I was excited about sharing my most unusual experience with my family. I was a little concerned they would question my sanity. As I related my story my mother was transporting food items and dishes from the kitchen to the table. As always she diligently was making sure the table was set just right before being the last to sit down and start her own breakfast. As she move back and forth I thought that she was taking no or little interest in my story. Then out of the blue she said that experience was just a dream and in a dismissive tone said to think other wise was a lot of “hooyee”, her word for nonsense. Then she proceeded to tell me in a motherly tone she does not what me to do that any more. I inquired amusingly if you do not believe it why would you not want me to be doing it… what harm would there be?  I just don’t want you doing it she said in a tone that indicating she wanted that to be the final word on the topic. 

– Anonymous Dreamer

Some weeks later I conveyed this story to my close friend John when visiting he and his wife at their home.  John by nature is a skeptic and at the time a self proclaimed agnostic. He was very emphatic that I just had a vivid dream or nightmare and out of body experiences were out of the realm of science or logic. I amusingly said that to proof him wrong the next time I have such a experience I will over come my fears and make a trip to his house and attempt to make my presence known. His tone changed a bit, with both a hint of humor but more seriousness, and he said I should not do this. He said if I did, and he knew I was present he would immediately get out of bed and give me a phone call thus waking up my body and potentially blocking my reentry. Not sure that  things work quite this way in the nether world but I dully check him off my list of places to visit if ever I had a similar experience.

Since this time I had only one similar “dream state” experience of this nature which was well beyond the realm of a ordinary dream. This happened several years later after my first.  

For weeks I would come home from work feeling very extraordinarily fatigued. I would lie down and would feel almost feverish and doze off for about a half hour only to awake feeling as or more exhausted. One afternoon I thought I had awoke from my brief nap to a rapid vibration of my whole body. My first thought was that it was an earth quake then I thought maybe I was having a heart attack. The clue that this time told me this was  not a normal situation was that everything I perceived in by room was gray and lacked color. The rapid vibrations of my body continued until a tunnel suddenly formed about me with what appeared to be a vortex of gray smoke or clouds making up its walls. I felt my body start to lift up off the bed. I was obviously full of apprehension. Had I died? My ascent started to increase faster and faster thru the tunnel until I broke free at the end of this very long column. The feeling was very peaceful and it was as if I was suspended floating above the earth while observing the stars before me. This feeling of floating in space lasted only a few moments. I remember thinking to myself ”look at all the stars”  feeling awed by what was before me. In hind site this thought amused me because this is a line out of 2010 A Space Odyssey.  

The next sensation was one that I will remember forever sense it was one of the most intense and pleasurable I ever experienced. It was as if my mind was exploding and expanding out into the reaches of space. There was this moment that I can only explain as receiving infinite knowledge, knowing all the answers and how everything worked given to me in a brief burst of a couple of seconds. I commented to myself at one point  “so that is what it is all about”. Unfortunately I started to feel my body slowly drift back down towards and into the center of the tunnel. As I did I felt the newly gained knowledge start to fade or drain from my memory. I closed my eyes and frantically struggled to retain two or three pieces of “critical knowledge” thinking to myself if I can only retain something key that would prove this experience was real or even potentially profitable… a cure or a yet undiscovered invention, an unsolved life mystery,  just anything unknown to us mere mortals at the current time. But as I would frantically attempt to focus and be selective on several newly acquired tidbits of knowledge it would slip and fade from my memory like water running thru loosely cupped hands as my body continued to drift down thru the gray tunnel. My body continued to descend until it was once again lying on my bed but now still and peacefully. I opened my eyes and all was has it should be. A gnawing thought stuck with me for a long time afterward even though I did not know the meaning or validity of this experience and that was if only I hadn’t been so greedy and only focused on one piece of knowledge could I have retained it and brought it back with me. My recollection is that I did not have those feverish high fatigue episodes after that afternoon. 

In relaying this these experiences to fiends and people I have meet over the years there were many who were believers, many skeptics, that this was indeed an experience out side of the physical world and normal dream experience. I personally have no doubt. Some have asked why I did not continue to actively pursue these dream states. I tell them since both my experiences had a sense of awe, great pleasure, combined with a element of darkness and panic that maybe it was best for me to not actively explore this realm. Better to let them find me if fate or some other force would have it. Or maybe it is a son’s natural instinct to heed his mother's advice: I don’t want you to do that any more!

– Anonymous Dreamer