The nights are the hardest. The Dreams. I can’t control the Dreams.

Giant Bears. Chasing me. The flood waters pushing me to the top of the castle built out of salt. Crumbling under my feet as I try to climb harder and faster. I can see safety. It’s just barely out of my reach. Then it’s far far away. There’s so much water in between. I feel alone. There’s no one beside me. But I’m not alone. She’s there. I can almost feel her. She’s not climbing. Not scrambling up the salt cliff. The castle lines faded. The ledges disappearing. She’s floating beside me. A hand. On my shoulder. Not pushing. Just resting. Lifting. She’s going to swim with me if I fall. She’s trying to speak to me. But I’m frantically escaping the Bears and now the Sharks. So I can’t hear what she’s saying. I’m screaming and crying. The tears are melting the cliffside. It’s a river. It’s going to take me. There’s nothing to grab onto. I feel myself slipping into the salty stream. Moving so slow. I can only feel her presence. She wants me to be calm. The Bears aren’t real. The Sharks aren’t real. The tears are. The castle is gone. The salt is gone. It’s just water. And I’m floating. There’s sky. Birds. Clouds. The sunshine feels warm on my wet face. She’s beside me. I can feel her smile. Feel her Peace. I’ve survived the Dream. I am alone again. But not. I don’t see or feel her but I know she’s there.

I will always survive the Dream.