Dreaming in the Light

RUSHING TOWARD THE LIGHT

It’s amazing how fast a person can drive when there’s a long stretch of highway, lots of time, and minimal traffic. Sarah blazed down I-95, leaving her life in Georgetown behind. Working in the nation’s capital during election season had been grueling, so she was taking a much-needed break from the pressure of running her busy political consulting firm. She’d chosen to visit her grandmother in Georgia, where sweet memories of peach cobbler and iced tea could be rekindled.

Vacations had always been fun and interesting in her family. Her father was in the Navy, and had an important position at the Pentagon, top secret stuff, with little time off. But when he was able to plan a vacation, it was magnificent. Europe for three weeks during summer break. Hawaiian islands for a month. Cruises to Alaska to see whales and walk on glaciers. And of course, the educational trips to Grandma’s home in Georgia, filled with rich history lessons and Southern hospitality.

This trip was different. Sarah had no interest in meandering her way to Savannah. Instead she floored it on the Interstate and challenged herself to see if she could beat the GPS estimated arrival time. “Eight hours and 17 minutes? Hah! I can beat that with my eyes closed.”

Unfortunately, she didn’t make it into the Savannah area until midnight, with another twenty minutes before reaching Grandma’s house. She didn’t want to arrive late-night, and pulling off at the safest exit, checked into a hotel and waited for morning. As the sun rose, she headed out, grabbing an orange juice box and a banana from the sparse complimentary breakfast laid out for guests. Mumbling under her breath she sighed. “Sign of the diminishing times, eh?”

GPS back on, full tank of gas, and she was ready to roll. Sarah grabbed her cell phone.

“Hello Grandma, it’s Sarah! I’m here in Savannah and will be at your place soon – get the teapot going, warm some biscuits and put out the homemade jam, your baby girl is on her way!” And with a laugh and a smile, she hung up.

And then it happened.

On the last leg of the journey Sarah’s excitement grew, and she continued to drive at high speed, forgetting about the changing pavement and narrowing road ahead. Suddenly and out of nowhere, she came upon a large pig in the middle of the lane and had no time to react. With a sharp turn to the right, she lost control and the car flew over the low-level embankment, crashed through a fence, and hit a tree.

Having been knocked unconscious Sarah never heard the sound of sirens and was unaware of how urgently the paramedics worked to get her in the ambulance. The police had her identity and cell phone, and made the appropriate calls to her family, who immediately arrived at the hospital to assess the situation. So it began, the mystery and the miracle awaiting them all.

“ALL THAT WE SEE OR SEEM IS BUT A DREAM WITHIN A DREAM” ― Edgar Allan Poe

Sarah had the strange sensation that she was floating, not tethered to anything, and wondered why it seemed like she was dreaming when she knew she was awake. As if she had jumped out of an airplane without a parachute, she stretched her arms to navigate where she would land. Her thoughts spoke loudly in her subconscious. “How odd, this can’t be right, I can’t fly.”

The ground came up quickly, yet she landed softly. Sarah found herself walking down the gravel path to her grandma’s home, a strange greenish light shining in the distance, drawing her forward. Ahead of her on the path was a man pulling a suitcase, with his jacket tossed over his shoulder.

She caught up to him and touched him on the arm. “Hi there, I’m Sarah Allen from Virginia. Who are you?”

He stopped and turned to face her. Sarah was surprised that he looked so familiar, unable to place him. Something inside told her that they knew one another, but that was silly. He sure was cute, with his twinkly brown eyes and tousled dark hair.

“Grady Quinlan, also from Virginia.” He reached out his hand to shake hers. “I’m headed to my best friend’s wedding being held up the road at Stoney Hill Plantation. Are you going to the wedding too?”

Heck, this was her dream, so she could create whatever fantasy she wanted.

“Well I guess I am, in fact that’s my Grandmother’s home and I’m staying with her for my vacation!”

Sarah had no idea that Grandma had been renting the property for weddings but liked the idea. She wondered where her car was, had no luggage, and no purse, but somehow it didn’t seem to matter.

“I’m thinking that it’s going to be dusk soon, so we should hurry if we want to get there before dark.”

Grady studied her face. “Have we met before? I never forget a face and would definitely remember one as pretty as yours!” Oh boy, he was cute and charming. Sarah was liking this dream a lot.

She looked at him sideways. “No, we’ve never met. What I do know is that Grandma will have dinner ready and we can always make room for one more at the table.” Continuing on, Sarah discovered the source of the green hue near the house. It was an antique street lantern, positioned next to the porch. The light inside was like the color of jade, and mesmerizing. “Strange, I don’t remember this being here.”

Funny how you can move through a dream exactly as if you were awake. Days unfold and events transpire that may not make sense but are meaningful. Sarah was amazed at how easy it was to enjoy herself, and how her day-to-day activities seemed so normal. Grandma was sweet and kind, and full of happy stories. The guests were arriving for the destination wedding, with groups of people mulling around, and gifts arriving. The household staff managed it all with precision and ease, while Grady continued to be charming as they spent more time together.

Sarah learned that he’d grown up in Fairfax and was one of five children in his Irish family. He had attended Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore on a baseball scholarship for his undergraduate and received his doctoral degree from their School of Medicine. The fact that he had his home and his practice in Alexandria seemed fortuitous for some reason.

She loved it that as she kept dreaming, he became the perfect guy – funny, easy-going, smart and unattached. He wanted her to be his guest at the wedding, and she happily accepted. But in her heart, Sarah felt that time was running out. She found a painted rock on a shelf next to the fireplace, aware that it was hers from childhood. She’d decorated it with a small, green-colored cross and wrote her name on the back. She decided to slip it into Grady’s jacket pocket so that he wouldn’t forget her.

At morning breakfast, Grady shared with her that he and his best friend Ben had grown up together all through school and college, and had spent part of their senior year abroad, touring most of Europe and ended the trip by eating their way across Italy. By the time Ben met Linda and they got engaged, Grady was well on his way to being a doctor, yet they had always remained close. And today, Grady would watch Ben get married to a beautiful woman, in a beautiful place, with a beautiful date on his arm.

And then it happened.

Sarah stopped dreaming. Nothing at all, just a blank screen in her mind, like someone had turned off the signal to her brain.

LIFE IS BUT A DREAM

Sarah could hear muffled sounds, familiar voices, and a constant beeping next to her, and attempted to open her eyes. It felt like someone was pulling her violently from one known world to another, and nausea set in. She looked up and saw her father, holding her hand.

“Sarah honey, it’s Dad. Can you hear me? We’ve been waiting for you to wake up sweetheart.”

She stared at him, trying to construct words, and finally spoke. “Hi Dad. Why are you in Virginia?”

“We’re not in Virginia, sweetheart, we’re in Georgia. You had an accident and have been in the hospital. Can you remember what happened?”

She just stared at him, unable to respond.

Her father squeezed her hand and smiled. “It’s ok, don’t worry.”

A dark-haired man entered the room, and she heard his deep voice. “How’s she doing? I got a call that she’s regaining consciousness.”

Sarah couldn’t believe it. It was Grady. Her mind was reeling, and she started to feel nauseous again.

Without hesitating, Grady walked over to the side of her bed, looking at all the equipment and monitors surrounding her. “Everything looks good, Sarah. You’re one lucky gal, I can tell you that.”

“Wait, Grady, just a second. How was the wedding? I don’t remember it, so I guess I didn’t go with you. I’m sure it was just lovely for Ben and Linda.”

Now it was Grady’s turn to be confused. “I’m sorry, what did you say?” Her parents stood on the other side of the bed, looking concerned.

“The wedding, at my Grandmothers plantation? You practically told me your whole life story. Your family in Fairfax, baseball scholarship, Johns Hopkins, being a doctor, travelling to Europe with Ben. Right?”

Grady grabbed the bed rail to steady himself. “What I know is that I was on my way to my friend’s wedding at some plantation in Georgia when I came up on a car accident. And yes, I’m a doctor so I was able to assist the paramedics, and I rode with you in the ambulance. I’ve checked in on you throughout this week, and that’s it.”

Her mother reached out and patted Sarah’s arm. “Honey, you’ve been in a coma, and they gave you lots of medications, so I think it’s best if we just let you rest a bit and we can talk about all of this tomorrow. I’m sure we’ll figure it out, but not now.”

And with that, Grady said his goodbyes, perplexed by what had just transpired. He was headed back to Virginia anyway, where he could bury himself in his work and not think about anything else. He was a doctor and lived by facts not fiction. What she needed was a psychiatrist or a psychic to unravel how she came to have that much information about him.

The following day the attending physician was called in to determine if Sarah was able to be discharged.

“Sarah, all of your vital signs are good. I know you had some confusion when you woke up, but a coma is a mysterious thing. Some scientists believe coma patients don’t see or feel or hear a thing. Some scientists believe that coma patients actually dream. Since you have no apparent memory loss, I’m releasing you under your parents supervision, with discharge orders for your after-care.” She was numb. That was it, she was going home.

Her Georgetown condo was a safe place for recovery, with all things familiar surrounding her. After a few weeks, her parents left, and she tried to settle into the routine they had laid out for her. Rest, eat healthy, no heavy lifting. But each night as she slept, she dreamt about Doctor Grady, in a backdrop of soft green light, which left her discombobulated and restless.

As the dreams intensified, she didn’t know whether to be scared or excited, but couldn’t stop thinking about him. She knew something important had happened and wanted to continue the adventure, to figure out what might come next. Maybe it was the dreams that were supposed to be her real life. Either way, she had to find out.

Her parents had given her their minivan to get around. Compelled to take a drive, she headed out to her favorite getaway spot, Deale Beach, on the Chesapeake Bay about an hour from Georgetown.

One of Deale's most famous landmarks, Happy Harbor Restaurant was a casual fun place, with great food, great views, and cheerful patrons. The atmosphere reenergized her, and she was grateful to be seated facing the water. As she ate, she gazed out on the pier, and recognized a man seated on a bench drinking a beer. Heart pounding, she waited until she could trust her legs would hold her up, paid the bill and walked toward him.

“Hello Grady, nice to see you again.” She was timid but certain it was him.

He glanced up, surprised that anyone could possibly know him here in Maryland. He stood up and leaned against the piling behind him. “Sarah Allen, how did you find me?”

She saw that he was holding a small rock in his hand, and realized it was her painted stone. Shaking her head, she practically whispered. “I don’t know how this happened but I put that rock in your pocket when you came to Georgia for that wedding. It’s a mystery that I can’t solve Grady.”

“True. When I found it, I had a funny feeling the signature on the back was you. Look, maybe this is coincidence or maybe it’s an illogical event that doesn’t need to be explained. Nonetheless, it appears that you and I were supposed to meet. And you know a lot about me, but I don’t know much about you. Let’s take a stroll down the boardwalk and you can fill me in, ok?”

He took her hand and pulled her close.

Sarah took a deep breath, letting the ocean air fill her lungs.

“Sure, of course. I’d love to tell you all about me.”

“As long as I can dream, I will dream of you.” ― Cassandra Clare