Dream: The Bridge
by Myrna Nieves
I wake up in the middle of a bridge, possibly the Brooklyn Bridge. I am standing in my long flannel robe in the middle of a bridge, half leaning on top of a cream-guava column (an indescribable color, but it is the most pronounced I perceive). I look at the planks of the bridge at my feet and the serene sapphire water around me. Why am I waking up on a bridge and not in my bedroom, in my apartment? At my sides there are two people, also standing, at rest, as if guarding me in what I came out of the azure. I wonder if they are my guides; they are masculine, they are not menacing figures; I feel comfortable between them. They don't move or try to touch me. For some reason I look to my right and see two long lines of people wanting to cross. There are policemen stationed in each of the lines asking for papers — perhaps passports — and people are somewhat desperate or there is a lot of haste in their intentions. A fight breaks out between two, they fall rolling over onto the floor and one of them stubbornly tries to strangle the other. People run to separate them and with some effort, they succeed. I turn my attention to myself, I see my feet, and realize that I have not moved much because I do not sense that I am firm in this reality, or perhaps the bridge scares me. I don't want to wake up there. How did this happen? I make an effort and close my eyes, squeezing them tightly. I wake up again, this time in my bed in my Williamsburg apartment, staring at the pink sari that acts as a curtain on the window. I wake up quietly, wearing my flannel robe and winter socks.
I know that those who survived the fall of the Twin Towers crossed the bridges, slowly and heavily, covered in white dust. The atmosphere of my dream, although with a warm and summery climate, was somewhat more agitated, and recent: perhaps all these people were immigrants; or perhaps they were refugees from hurricanes or plagues, and wanted to enter the City.
I am grateful for the guides at my side, they felt protective and respectful. What did they want me to observe?
