Kraftwerk – Hall of Mirrors

I had a dream the other night that I can’t seem to shake.

I had just watched The Edge of Tomorrow and it got the wheels turning. All those versions of Tom Cruise’s character were different people. He started as an asshole. By the end he was not. How about all those in-between Tom Cruises? What kind of men were they?

Ranks and ranks of me as far as the eye could see. All the men I didn’t want to be, each one in a trap I had somehow avoided. Lonely men who lived alone and became bitter and isolated.

Men marrying into the church, having to lie to himself and others that he still believed, bitter and isolated. Men who never jumped off the runaway conservative train and didn’t know how to get off. Me’s who never escaped.

It felt like one of those dreams Carl Jung talked about. The ones you are supposed to figure out. Dreams that are clearly messages from the unconscious. I’ve had a few of those over the years. I’m still puzzling over a couple of them.

What did this mean?

I think the fact I changed perspectives at the beginning was a clue. Something about connectedness.

Maybe that we should see a bit of ourselves in the people we don’t want to be if we can. If you’re one of those former conservatives who feels like they’ve escaped, there had to be timelines where you didn’t.

What got you into that backward mindset and what got you out? I’ll try to do that with this blog if I can. If it reaches any young version of me and helps them make better choices, I’ll be happy if it’s just one guy.

I’m also hoping the more enlightened folks among us will make room for redemption and be a friend when a friend is needed. Victims of misinformation are still victims. Many thanks to those who helped me out of my mental traps, even if they never got to see it happen.