~Foxtide888

Have you ever had one of those dreams so detailed, you could swear it was a memory? Even if it's something you know couldn't and didn't happen? Well for me, there was one particular dream that seems to come back in my mind so vividly every few years or so, that it feels just like a memory. The problem is, in this memory, I'm playing around with a jetpack.

As a kid, I loved movies like The Rocketeer. Still do love that movie. So it's no surprise that I have a thing for retro sci-fi at times. And yes, I've had dreams of being the Rocketeer. I tell you, nothing beats dreams where you are flying. Not even dreams of sex compare. Because in those dreams, you're up in the air, free as a bird to go wherever you want. But watch out for power lines. I still remember that feeling in those dreams. Flying above the trees, and looking toward the horizon. And you always think of how different the world looks from above. Not flying as high as a plane, and low enough to still clearly see the details on the ground. Oh look, there's the ice cream man.

The dream in specific that's most like a memory to me, has a younger me going out into the field with gear on. I very clearly remember telling my mother I was going out to play. And her yelling me to be careful. And then I strapped on a bunch of red and black padded gear, and put on a helmet. And the jetpack I wore was similar to those real ones that fly for about 30 seconds, and are powered by hydrogen peroxide. I remember going up into the air, about as high as the tops of trees. I couldn't maneuver. I could just go up for a few minutes, and then come back down. Sorta like some sort of park ride. And I'd refuel and do it again, over and over.

Whenever I had that dream, it was so vivid that I could swear it actually happened. A few years ago during Covid, and not long after my former best friend moved to Portland and ghosted me, I had that dream again. And it was so real in my mind, I literally spent a few hours trying to mentally put the pieces together of whether it actually happened. And then wondering where that old jetpack was. My mind was treating it as if it were a common thing kids had in this world. And something you'd want to dig out of your closet for nostalgia. But it's not there. It was never there. That's what's most sad about it.

And in having this dream, I understand a bit more people who's minds cannot discern memory from dreams, or fact from fiction. Those who's minds are so broken without medication, they could swear things were different. I recall something. I think maybe from a Silent Hill video game, a doctor's memo was found in one part. In it, they spoke of a patient who was brought back to reality. Everything in the life the poor man thought he knew, was all in his head. And the doctor questioned the morality of having brought the man out of it, because in his own little world he was happy. It's sad to think that the happiest people in this world are the ones who may be clinically insane. Imagine how many Bronies would be happy in Ponyville. Or how many would love to be in Hogwarts, live as a Transformer, or be in their favorite era, drive their favorite car, or even be in their own fan-fiction. Reality is cruel to us. So it's no surprise things like the Oasis in Ready Player One was the world's most valued resource. You could go to work in VR online, and look however you want. Imagine ordering food with Robocop at the counter? And then a drone delivers it right to your door. The temptation of living in a dream is so strong, once in it, we may never want to leave.