The Flying Men

Encouragement comes in strange ways.

I was standing in a high-rise apartment on an upper floor, singing vocal warm-ups. A big wind started blowing outside. A flock of strange-looking birds sailed past the window, then flew back around. I opened the sliding glass door and walked out onto the balcony. One of the birds flew close above me and I could see it was a man in a white flying suit - like a flying squirrel. He laughed and had a big smile on his face, having the time of his life. Then a whole flock of flying men flew in formation like Starlings. 

Next, I’m standing on the ground outside the building talking to the flying man. He described what it was like to take off, “The first little bit is bumpy until you get high enough, then it’s easy!” He told me they took off from the ground instead of jumping from a high place. 

Dream Journal - January 11, 2013

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This dream makes me giggle whenever I read it. In 2013 I was spending time in Portland, Oregon off and on through the winter, so I’m pretty sure the high-rise apartment was located in that city. Portland hosts a famous bumper-sticker: Keep Portland Weird. So if flying men in white suits could exist anywhere on the planet - they would be in Portland. :)

My interpretation of this dream goes something like this:

“The first little bit is bumpy until you get high enough, then it’s easy!” - Someone is cheering me on here. Whether it’s my subconscious mind, or a higher soul mind, or an outside spiritual guide - I have no idea. But clearly, this guidance is letting me know that it’s about to get tough, but if I stick with it and gain some altitude, the jet stream (or creative flow in this case) will carry me.

In 2013 my album Float was two years old and I was still pushing it uphill, promoting, gigging, trying to figure out how to use social media in a better way. In my Morning Pages Journal, I was writing about being frustrated with my progress (or lack of) and feeling like I needed to just bail out on music altogether.

I was working with wonderful musicians and recording engineers, and my life was (and still is) full of interesting, artistic people. When the going did in fact get tough, I leaned into the people around me and somehow we all stayed in the game, kept playing shows, booking tours, reminding each other why we decided to do this in the first place. The flock of Flying Men that moved like Starlings in the dream, represented all the creative comrades I was traveling with on the ride called Life, the trip called Music.

I stuck with music, and a couple of years later was invited to record another album with my friend David Jacobs-Strain. That album, Paper Walls, ended up being the best musical work of my life. I would have missed out on that incredible experience if I had given up before making that album.

I can’t say it ever became “easy.” Trying to get any project off the ground can feel daunting and awkward. But, once you take off, get some loft, and soar (or flap your wings at least) there is some sense of the air carrying you forward.

So, thanks for the message, Flying Man - and Keep It Weird! ☆

(Photo by Ayko Neil Kehl on Unsplash)

Written by Michelle McAfee