Cake Dreams

Last night I dreamed about chocolate cake. You know the kind I mean: rich, dense and covered in thick, gooey butter cream frosting. The kind of cake that melts in your mouth and tempts you to take just one more bite.

I'm normally not a big fan of cake and much prefer pie. But the cake I dreamed of last night was the kind that could change my mind.

After I woke up, I wondered what the dream meant. Was it simply a dream about cake, or was it some mysterious message from my subconscious? Was it triggered by something that happened over the last week, or could it have been a sign from the universe? Was the luscious, chocolaty buttercream goodness sitting on top of the dreamy cake a metaphor for something else?

I don't have an answer for those questions – even several hours after waking up to start my day. I went about my morning routine. I moved some furniture around in the foyer, prepping for a fundraiser we are having this next weekend. I played with the dogs for a while and I listened to the church bells announce the hours of the day. I put a roast on to cook for dinner tonight. I told hubby to "break a leg" on his way out the door for his performance in the Sunday matinee he's performing in. And still, I thought about that chocolate cake and what the dream might mean...

The week has been a pretty good one. The weather has been wonderful – that perfect late spring weather with cooler mornings and the warm afternoon and evening temperatures that hint at the languid summer headed our way in just weeks. It was a productive week in which I ticked a few things off my ongoing "to-do" list. I watched my two books, "Done Rubbed Out" and "Hard Job" switch places back and forth in the number one spot in their (admittedly small) niche category on Amazon. I spent time with friends – sharing news, good food (which incidentally included a very good chocolate cake!) and pleasant and fulfilling company. So why the dream?

Perhaps it was simply about anticipation. Maybe it's a reminder that if we want something delicious in our lives we have to put in the time and effort to bake up something good. It could be a directive to remember that as we work through our meat and veggie weeks, we should take time to plan a wonderful dessert into the menu so we experience the sweetness that life has to offer and the sugar that comes from good friends, goals being achieved and things being accomplished.

Or maybe it was just a dream....

I'll probably wonder about it the rest of the day. Maybe tonight I'll dream about pie....French silk pie – with light and airy meringue whipped high like dreams over smooth filling; sliding across the tongue like a happy memory or the best kind of new day that's served up to us every once in a while by the ultimate chef... in the kitchen of the universe.

Sweet dreams.