Dream People Changing Identities

Peter is the name of the fellow I dream about most often since I was a teenager (as you've probably guessed from the name of this blog.)  For about 20 years, he showed up looking more or less like British singer-songwriter Peter Gabriel.  I liked that.  I really liked that.  I'm nostalgic for those dreams.

Then things changed when I had a disastrous love affair with a man that made the Marquis de Sade look like an amateur, Mitch.  At first Mitch seemed to be my soul mate but it turned out that he was a sick evil fuck who stole every penny I had, then beat me up and left me for dead.  Worse than that, he hit my 4 month old puppy.  The puppy is now a thriving 7 year old dog.  Mitch basically asked me to choose between him and the dog and I chose the dog.

Anyway, since discovering Mitch was an alcoholic monster, Peter has changed in many of my dreams.  I never quite know if it's him or not.  There have been many times people who do not look like Peter Gabriel tell me that they are my dream Peter.  Sometimes Peter will go through most of a dream wearing one face and then remove it as if removing a mask to reveal his true self.  Sometimes this goes the other way around and Peter removes his face to become Mitch or Hitler or someone similar.  It really, REALLY pisses me off.

One time in a lucid dream Mitch insisted that he was Peter and that I was prejudiced against his appearance.  Suddenly Peter walked up and told me that he would never do that to me.  A few nights later, guess what?  You guessed it -- Peter appeared to me in the guise of Mitch.  He sheepishly explained that his boss told him that it would be good for me if Peter would put on Mitch's disguise in my dreams.  I told Peter that I really didn't like his boss.

Now, I do get what's going on in my subconscious.  Mitch seemed to be someone he wasn't.  I can't trust anyone any more because of what Mitch did to me.  Everyone is a potential Mitch -- even those people inside of my dreams.  I guess I'm to try and get over superficial appearances.  Don't judge a book by it's cover -- yada, yada, yada.  I GOT it, already, subconscious!  Can we move on, now?

I guess these dreams are good for me but I really wish Peter would just show up as Peter and no one else.  I wind up spending most of the lucid dream trying to figure out who he is, which doesn't leave much time for fun stuff like flying, eating ice cream, dancing or squeezing each other's butt-cheeks.

It just goes to show that you it's not all fun and games in lucid dreams.

Image of Peter Gabriel at a 1978 gig by Helge Øverås for Wikimedia Commmons.