Quantum Leap

In last night's dreams, I lived a few moments of others' lives, people I've never met before. This has happened previously, giving me a chance to see many different walks of life.

The dreams are like an old TV-show called Quantum Leap, where the main character jumps into the life of another, any part of the world, any time period, male or female. There's a few minutes of complete confusion, as he figures out who he is and what's happening.

However, I don't have an assistant that no one sees with a blinking Lego-like device in his hand reading off the stats and information. It is there, though, in my mind. For those few minutes, I AM the person, sharing their memories. Yet, I hold those memories long after I wake up.

Some memorable and very detailed snippets include:

• a child huddles on a mattress against the wall in a war-torn country; the skittering sounds of insects cross the floor in the waiting silence, and there is a taste of dust from the air
• a young child sits half-bored as his grandfather tells of  past snowball fights using trash-can lids as shields; behind the bored look, the nugget of an idea "I can do that too" blooms
• a girl, just about to leave high school and go to college, still struggles to understand who she is inside, when all her friends seem to know who they are and enjoy life to the fullest
• an exhilarating ride on a roller-coaster through the dark with lights all around is followed by a friend's nudge and nod to ride it again
• a pregnant mother sits quietly in a warm sunbeam, as she caresses her barely extended middle and wonders what her daughter's life will be, imagining both wonders and worries
• a young mother at her wits end and the verge of tears, tries to manage three wild preschool-aged children in her care, exhausted and desperate for help with no where to turn
• a father enjoys his weekend with the kids, playing games well into the night, despite the backlash he will receive from his ex-wife; this is his time to hear about their lives and see the light shining in their young eyes
• a mother colors pages with her two children at the table very recently cleared of dinner plates; it was a long day at work and school, and they share a moment of fun, trying to ignore the dishes, homework and work brought home that anxiously await their attention
• a woman in a ghetto prays right after her half-grown son left to seek vengeance, sweating in fear as tears stream down her cheeks; she half-expects the knock to announce news that he was shot, but desperately prays that it would not be so
• a father helps his daughter move out on her own, proud of the woman she has become but still wonders who will be there to watch over and protect her when she is so far away from him
• a woman, working as a store clerk and depending on sales commission, paces the store floor and worries about the bills at home; the store is empty of customers - again
• a man works on a bridge, trusting his full weight to straps and clips as he arm-wrestles a rusted bolt loose and ignores the churning water and boats passing several hundred feet below his dangling boots
• a woman enjoys a moment of peace and solitude away from her office job, gazing at a lone dandelion growing in a sparse bit of green; she then decides to share the remainder of her sandwich with the birds fluttering at her feet and in overhead tree branches; the gentle breeze that rustles the leaves is filled with the songs of city life
• a middle-aged man walks through the temptations of goodies in the workplace cafeteria, after he promised his wife he'd stick to a diet; a major guilt trip follows two oreo cookies, making them taste like sawdust
• a middle-aged woman sits for a spell, speaking to her neighbor on the steps of her home in a low-income neighborhood; after trading news, she's accepts the invitation into the neighbor's kitchen, where they share a cup of  tea - and some good gossip
• an older man tries to find work, knowing he competes against younger candidates fresh out of college with the latest IT skills (and even the HR person is young); thoughts about what to say to the family when THIS job falls through dance in the mind, making it harder to understand the questions
• a person atop a mountain range, snow bright peaks all around, pushes back the faux-fur lined hood to feel the sunshine and cold breeze touch a bare head; the frosty air inhaled is a moment of pure bliss after a long fight to survive cancer, eyes close in wonder of the moment of life
• a homeless man on the street huddles in an large three-sided box with one open side against the brick wall, listening half-asleep for footsteps that may help or harm
• a man rejoices in his lover's embrace, exhausted and excited, following a long wedding day, looking forward to a life together
• a woman in a shelter rooms with three strangers, where she cannot sleep but cannot leave to go for a calming walk either, or she will loose her place where it is warm, so many strange sounds and smells surround her
• an elderly woman shares a can of cat food with her only companion, a white cat with a blotch of brownish-black on its back: a companion very much loved and of which she is so very grateful to have in this cold world, so she uses the "good dishes"
• a gentle smile and warm feeling grows in an old man, as a widow makes it clear that she is interested; no matter how old and bald, there's still life inside that someone wants to know better

How easy is it for me to look at another's life and judge a situation from my own perspective? How often have I stepped back and looked at things through their eyes instead?

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There is far too much to experience in this life than one person can do. Can you imagine what the planner would look like if we did? But we are not alone; we can learn from each other, as simple as genuinely listening. 

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Together we can shine like we can never do alone!