January 05, 2023

In the dream, I’m talking to an Indigenous man, about my age. We’re in a large lobby of a large auditorium for some sort of convention. As we’re talking, he looks up at the 12-16 ft rice paper eagle that spans the corner of the lobby and he mentions something about it. Just then, the paper eagle somehow gets unhinged from its latches and it swoops down and a wing hits the man on the head as it lands on the ground beside us. This is a sign, I say to myself. He knows it too and says let’s not talk about it.

Then we have another eagle symbol encounter. I’m beginning to think he’s meant to me my life partner. He thinks the same and surprises me by inviting me to his home in-between dinner and the evening dance at the auditorium. When we go in, he presents me with a ribbon skirt and beautiful ribbons and beaded jewelry for my hair, fingers, wrists and shoes. I put everything on, sort of in a state of overwhelm and shock and then he brings me into the main living area where there are dozens of aunties, uncles, and cousins. He introduces me as his girl friend and says even though my skin is white I have the heart & spirit of an Indigenous woman and even though some of his relatives give him dirty looks of scorn & disapproval, the majority of his relatives all do a ceremonial bow and they chant a thing which tells me that I’m not just his girl friend but his life partner and I’ll have a position of respect in the community because he is a spiritual leader but he didn’t tell me that so I didn’t know until I heard it in the song. The song is in their native language but someone I understand it all.

I’m just standing there, feeling happy and fearful, grateful and nervous and I just say thank you to them and smile and nod and then they get up and go back to what they were doing and I take his hand and we walk out and go to the dance.

This is my dream.