A Mining Experience

When we consider a mining community, we usually think of something different. I dreamt I had stumbled upon a true community, a commune, working in the mines. They tunneled for ores, men and women, and worked on their relationships above, with God and with each other. The head guy pulled me aside, soon after I arrived, and told me he wished to put me in charge of this group. Then one of the miners took me down into the mines, so that I could help in the search for rocks.

But these weren't ordinary tunnels. This was in the near future, and mining had progressed. The tunnels were just big enough to fit a human body, hollowed out into a smooth circle. You pulled yourself along the smooth rock, on your belly, till you came to a hollowed out area, where you could stand up and turn around. The central core would hold maybe eight men, standing up, cheek to jowl. From the central core, you entered another tunnel, that looked just like all of the others, until you came to your destination. It was something like the old Adventure game. Except no walking- only scooting on your stomach.

I found that I had let the miner move on while I admired the area where you could stand, and had lost sight of her. I also found that there was no way to move backward; you could only crawl forward. With heightened anxiety, I looked for the tunnel out and back to the surface, just as she came back for me to help me out.

I had other interactions with members of the group, and time went by. At one point some strange slug-like creatures drove by on motorcycles, careful not to ride on us. (Lest you forget this is a dream.) We evidently needed to get to a new location, for we were a traveling mining community, and the mine was no longer enough for us, so I began working on finding a new location. I little while later I was able to find the leader of the group, within the transition time. I told him I really enjoyed the relationships and working with people, but I was completely claustrophobic down there; I couldn't get through the tunnels. He told me we needed to get me back down into the mines.

And then I awoke. (Because all dreams are incomplete.) Thinking I need to care less about what people think, and more about how they are doing.

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