i laid for several minutes in a state of confusion....i had just woken up pretty much in a cold sweat and felt scared and anxious and then it hit me that i was safely ensconced in my truck bunk and i had only been dreaming.......the feeling of uneasiness wouldn't loosen it's grip on me tho......i don't think i dream very often.....well, unless you include the recurring one where i become a size 8 overnite and hit the lottery the next day and have to get a restraining order against sean connery, because he is stalking me............
i don't think i'm given to fits of panic and undo bouts of paranoia, and i wish i could remember all the details of my dream.....but i'm going to try to share it with you.....because i'd rather seem to be an alarmist than to wish i'd spoken up after something happpens......and i know there a whole lot of people much smarter and more well informed than me who watch these things, and i thank God daily for them and their diligence......
in my dream, it was already tomorrow....veteran's day...11/11/11.....and all across the country parades were rolling down main streets and flags were being waved and speeches were being given.....it was almost like i had a panoramic view of the entire United States......my heart was swelling with pride at the patriotism of our country and the honoring of all those who serve it, both those who have gone before and those active now.......but as i stood there taking in the grandness of it all, all across the country small explosions started to rise up.....i could hear the calls of panic....sirens....screams....and as soon as one started, another would follow.....all in different areas of the country.....all in smaller to medium cities across our land.....until i could see fires and smoke coming up from the horizons in all directions......my mind was racing....trying to figure out what to do....how to help......and then it hit me.......there were 11 attacks taking place....i don't think that any of them were on the scale of evilness that took place on 9/11,....they all seemed to be smaller but still, of devastating porportions and armed with the intentions of letting us know that we were not safe in our small towns.....that they had no respect for our heros and traditions .......and then i woke up.......
i don't know....i want to write it off to just being a combination of the giant cheeseburger with the works i had for supper last nite and being bounced and blown across the state of wyoming as i was trying to sleep.....along with the all the sentiments and gravity of the day that we celebrate tomorrow going thru my mind.....and that i renewed my company hazmat online training yesterday..........believe me, i hesitated for along time before writing this, not wanting to be called crazy or teased about becoming paranoid.....but i just couldn't shake the feeling of needing to speak up......
brad and i belong to a trucker's group of first observers.....we try to exercise extra vigilence in keeping alert for anything suspicious on the highways, at our ports.....especially when carrying a hazardous materials load or a high value load that terrorists could use or sell to finance their plots....it's something we all need to work on.....if something troubles you about a situation....if it makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up....don't hesitate to talk to someone in authority about it.......
a sincere thank you to each one of the heroic people who work hard every day to keep my dream from becoming a reality....to those who have served, to those serving now....even to those thinking about signing up.....
