Magic Dream

“Turn off your computer! Go to sleep!” I locked the door, outside which mom stood, and on which she hammered and shouted. Yes, I was playing computer games in my room and of course I hadn’t finished my homework yet. This scene repeated itself almost every day. I just finished my homework quickly and carelessly and then got myself into the virtual world every day after school. Shutting down the game, I caught a glimpse of my accordion lying in the corner of the room covered with dust. It had been silent for years. I climbed onto the bed and stared at the ceiling

My mind went blank. I tried to recall the sweet memories but all to no avail and finally fell asleep. I descended into a dream land. It all started with a snowy day. My family drove up to the hilltop on a narrow trail. Unfortunately the memory started fading from this point. But I remembered I woke suddenly and checked the time groggily. It was about 3 a.m. Mysteriously, I then had a lucid dream. 

men playing accordion

“You played the wrong note again!” my instructor said in frustration. I held the heavy accordion on my knees, sitting on the chair with sweat rolling down my face. The accordion was disproportionately huge compared with my small body. Pulling the bellows made my arm and shoulder sore and stiff. I could no longer keep practicing so I put the accordion aside, stepping out of my room. I went to the refrigerator to find some drink and saw my grandma cleaning up the kitchen. I didn’t say a word, but she seemed to read my mind. She passed me a bottle of juice and said tenderly and gently, “Once you decide to do something, focus on it and treat it seriously and carefully.” I just smiled noncommittally, then turned and went away. I didn’t know why the dream stopped and what happened next in this dream. I suddenly traveled to another scenario, the same as the first one, covered by snow. In front of me was a deep and bottomless hole. I seemed pushed by something and fell into the abyss. I kept on falling until I woke up.

I had the dream two weeks after my grandma passed away. This simple dream, without the ups and downs and magical and fascinating plots, played an important role in my growth. I was a good-for-nothing naughty boy at that time and maybe playing the accordion was my only special skill, which was mostly compelled by my parents. Though my grandma didn’t go to school when she was young because of the volatile situation of our country. Just as the proverb says “life is the best teacher”, the huge vicissitude in her life made her seem like a knowledgeable philosopher. She always told me the significance of studying and finding myself. From that night, the words of my grandma reverberated in my head again and again, like the last testament. Although it sounds cheesy and conventional, I did start to try to focus my heart and my head. I started trying to sit at desk tranquilly. From half an hour to a whole afternoon I was immersed in the plots, the equations and the articles. It was not only a time that I begun exploring the potential, it was also a process of rebirth. 

I was 14. And I changed. Maybe it was because of some supernatural influence of the dream, maybe it was just the end of my rebellious period. I believe that what I dreamed that night changed my life.