This information triggered the following dream, which at the time I called a "conscious dream." This marks the first time I recall knowing that I was dreaming and could control my environment while still asleep and in the dream state (even though that recognition was brief at the end of the dream).

*******************
December 14, 1987

I dream that a group of us at Saint Mary's University campus are going to a lecture on Edgar Cayce. On our way, some young woman and I fall behind and become late. The SMU football field is huge, and we have to cross it to get to the lecture. The scene changes and we are then in a dorm room getting ready when all of a sudden the young woman looks different. She has become sinister looking. She is dressed in tight black leather and either she has her black hair piled on top of her head, or she wears an elaborate headpiece of some kind. She holds up a sword, and is now standing about two metres above me. I am tangled among thick ropes against a wall, holding tightly to keep from dropping. There is no floor below me, only a dark void. I know that with one slash of her sword the ropes will break and I will fall into the void. She begins to chant something Satanic; one word over and over. I look down into the bottomless pit and think "Shelf. I need a shelf." I release my grip and know that a shelf will materialize for me to land on. It does. When I land, I look back up at her, with a slow triumphant smile. She begins to vanish as I open my eyes to end the dream.
********************

I was not purposely trying to have such a dream; but in reading that it could be possible to become consciously aware in your dreams while still asleep was a fascinating and exciting idea. I believe it was my excitement and desire that brought about the above dream. After this experience, I continued to have several "conscious dreams," for a few years. Then I found books about lucid dreaming and discovered that my "conscious dreams" were called "lucid dreams" and that numerous studies had been and were being done on the subject. I began corresponding with other lucid dreamers, and my own lucid dreaming took off like a rocket! I was incorporating new ideas and techniques for inducing lucidity. My lucid dreams were undergoing an accelerated evolution; becoming longer, more rich, more meaningful and more adventurous. Ideas triggered ideas which triggered experience which triggered more ideas....and the cycle continued (and continues!). (If a meme can be described as an "infectious idea" then dream memes must certainly exist!) My lucid skills were showing up in my non lucid dreams. For instance, I dreamed one night that milk had spilled over a shelf. There was no dish cloth or paper towel nearby to wipe it up. I decided to make wiping motions with my hand until a cloth manifested itself in my hand. Which it did. But I was not aware that I was dreaming.

When I awakened I was disappointed to note that I had "failed" to become lucid when I began thinking of making things manifest (something that I thought should have triggered me to become lucid). But a friend (and fellow lucid dreamer) suggested that I hadn't "failed," but that I was now incorporating lucid skills into non lucid dreams. And with that (infectious!) idea sitting nicely in my mind, my non lucid dreams took on a new evolution as well. I was doing things in my non lucid dreams that would suggest lucidity, but I would continue to interact in the dream, unaware that I was asleep and dreaming. These lucid skills gave my non lucid dreams a new dimension of meaning. Problems were solved more easily now that I had additional tools. (i.e. I could fly over barriers instead of trying to climb over them, or instead of giving up). The "can-do attitude" that came with these experiences spilled over into my waking life as well. It was subtle, but enough that I could notice a change over a period of time. Since my dreams were "easier" and more free, I would awaken more often with pleasant dream memories. (I am the type of person who can have a lousy day at the office if I've had a disturbing dream the night before; the emotions of the dreams tend to linger if they are particularly strong.) Even problem solving while awake was improved, perhaps because I had learned to expand my limits in the dream state and this belief, or attitude filtered down to my waking state.

Keeping in touch with fellow dreamers and learning about what they are doing in their dreams and about their ideas and questions about dreaming continues to inspire new learning for me. This is one of the reasons that it is such a joy to be involved with The Lucid Dream Exchange.

The Lucid Dream Exchange is a quarterly issue of lucid dream experiences, articles, and announcements submitted by individual readers. If you'd like more information about The Lucid Dream Exchange contact Lucy Gillis at lucy@turbotek.net