The most significant dreams came to me shortly after my friend Pete died. He was actually murdered. One night I entered into a dream and Pete was there. He said, "I want to take you to this place where I live." I thought, Well, that’s interesting. When we arrived, I saw it was a wonderful idyllic setting with a lot of creatures flying around: elephants, camels, people. I said, "I’d like to try flying myself." And he said, "Sure, but since you’re not dead, you have to go over to that booth there and rent some wings. They’re only a quarter." I said, "Great," and I went and rented the wings.
I took off, and I was flying around with all the other people, having a wonderful time. All of a sudden, I realized, "This is ridiculous. How can I fly with these twenty-five-cent wings?" Immediately I started to fall. I was terrified I was going to die. Then I thought, Wait a minute, I was just flying a minute ago, and I started flying again. I went back and forth with this — falling and flying, falling and flying — until it finally dawned on me what this was about. I said to myself: It is not these wings that enable you to fly, it’s your own confidence.
– – – Amy Tan in WRITERS DREAMING: Twenty-six Writers Talk About Their Dreams
and the Creative Process
Tracy Abell 
Very inspiring!
I love Amy Tan’s writing memoir, The Opposite of Fate, in which she talks about this dream and others she had after Pete was murdered.
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I didn’t know she had a memoir. I’m going to look that up. Thanks, Barb!
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Very inspiring!
I love Amy Tan’s writing memoir, The Opposite of Fate, in which she talks about this dream and others she had after Pete was murdered.
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awesome! thanks for sharing that!
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Oh, I’m glad it resonated with you, too. This hit me just right today and I wanted to share.
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Cool story. Reminds me of Dumbo and the magic feather!
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I’d forgotten that. Dumbo made me cry and cry when he and his mother entwined trunks through the bars. I’m getting teary just thinking about it.
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I’ll have to look for this book–inspiring!
I didn’t know you had a blog. WHY didn’t I know you had a blog? *is confused*
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Angela, is that you?
You probably didn’t know I had a blog because I just recently put the link on my Blue Board name.
How’s life/writing treating you?
(And yes, I LOVE that book).
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I’ll have to look for this book–inspiring!
I didn’t know you had a blog. WHY didn’t I know you had a blog? *is confused*
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Angela, is that you?
You probably didn’t know I had a blog because I just recently put the link on my Blue Board name.
How’s life/writing treating you?
(And yes, I LOVE that book).
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Wow. Powerful and beautiful and inspiring all at once. Do I need this book?
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I have shelves filled with writing-related books and this is one I love to pull out and open at random (having read it in its entirety years ago). There’s all sorts of good stuff in here. I highly recommend it, Kelly.
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