The Lifeboat

I had a dream last night that I was driving down the road and there was water on the road.  Along the way there appeared a boy in a boat that was driving down the road.  I called him Jimmy and asked him what he thought of all the water on the road.  He said he wasn’t concerned because he had a boat and that he would travel beside me in case I needed to get in.  When I woke up I looked outside to see if there was water on the road.  The driveway looked like it had rained but I didn’t see any standing water.  I was relieved because I don’t know anyone named Jimmy that has a small wooden boat that can travel on dry land as well as in the water.

What is interesting about this dream is that I remembered it.  Usually if I remember the dream when I wake up it is gone by the time my feet hit the floor.  I am not a dream interpreter, but I would venture a guess as to what this dream was telling me.  I remember thinking that if the water were to continue to rise I might be in some trouble.  Jimmy seemed as though we were friends and that he was there to help me.  I have felt very overwhelmed lately.  I think perhaps the dream was a reminder.  Not that I shouldn’t drive when there is water rising on the road, that part I’ve got, but maybe a reminder that I should know that I’m not alone.  Maybe I don’t have any little friends named Jimmy with a boat to travel the road with me when the water gets too deep, but I do have something better.

I have someone who is always there.  Someone who is traveling this road called life beside me, who loves me, who wants me to grow into something beautiful, who when the water rises can calm the roughest seas.  I have a Heavenly Father.  I have a boat I just have to remember who the Captain is, and it’s not me.  This is good because I can’t pilot a boat.  I would run it aground.  It is hard not being able to see the map to see where the boat is going sure, but I’m not sure that if I were privy to that information it would help my anxiety.  I’m thinking it would make it worse.  I also think it would defeat the purpose.  How do you grow if you know the plans?  How do you learn to trust if you can see what lies ahead?

I don’t know if that is the proper analysis of my dream or not.  Maybe it was just raining and my subconscious was messing with me.  Maybe I’ve read too many jokes about a boy named Jimmy and maybe I’m way off.  I’m not sure.  All I know is that I can still see the dream as clearly now as I did when I dreamed it.  I also know that I feel better knowing that even if I’m wrong I choose to believe that the interpretation is something more than just about a boy in a boat.  That my lifeline is still intact, my redeemer is still the captain and I’m just along for the ride and even if the ride comes to an end, it was quite a ride.  It was mine, unique and special and just for me and the boat traveled right beside me waiting to catch me when and if I fell.  That is good enough for me.