Dreams, daggers and democracy

“Did you have any bad dreams last night?”

Whenever I get asked that question by Rebecca before our first cup of coffee, I already know the answer: “No. Maybe. Yes. Why?”

“Because your yelling scared the heck out of me and the dog, for that matter. Again. So, was it about the chase thing this time?” asked my beloved “CSI” fan, feared by all criminal minds who dare to pixelate her 60-inch TV screen.

This time. Meaning it was not the first time.

She’s Lt. Columbo with lipstick. The only missing prop was a dusty lightbulb dangling from the ceiling.

My recurring dream was back.

It’s always about the same thing: I’m being chased by a stranger. I’m afraid but unharmed. I’m yelling – more like screaming, some say – until it ends and I wake up with no clue of what just happened.

What do dreams about being chased mean? According to Mr. Googly’s dream interpretation experts, it’s one of the most common dreams we can have, right up there with falling, being lost or having all of your teeth fall out.

Dreaming about being chased generally means that you are avoiding an issue or a person. Context is important. In other words, who’s chasing you matters.

Apparently, chase dreams use our “fight-or-flight” instincts to express fears, anxieties and relationships. I have no idea who or what I’m anxious about, but I can make an educated guess: COVID-19, unmasked shoppers, insurrectionists.

Great. Maybe I’ll just up my meds, and call it a day.

Speaking of recurring nightmares, Thursday was the first anniversary of the horrific January 6, 2021, attack on Congress.

It has been one year since a mob of about 2,500 rioters, armed with everything from pipes and flagpoles to chemical sprays, smashed their way into the ornate halls and hallowed chambers of the U.S. Capitol.

The deadly assault occurred as lawmakers in Congress met to certify Joe Biden’s presidential election win, and then temporarily forced them to scramble for their lives while disrupting the peaceful transfer of power.

Some, who truly believed this was how they were going to die that day, called loved ones to say goodbye. Others prayed for mercy.

This was not your father’s democracy.

There were five deaths related to the rampage:

• A Capitol Police officer who was beaten by rioters and died the next day of a stroke.
• A rioter and Air Force veteran who was fatally shot by a Capitol Police officer.
• Three other rioters who died during the attack from natural causes and a drug overdose.

About 150 Capitol and DC Metro police officers suffered injuries at the hands of the insurrectionists. Two officers died by suicide after the attack. Surviving officers say the day continues to haunt them.

More than 725 people have been charged with federal crimes stemming from the attack, including 14 from Michigan.

A good start. But we’ve got a ways to go. You don’t get to do what they did without facing serious consequences.

Apparently, these folks were from all walks of life: nurses, teachers, small-business owners, the CEO of a marketing firm and an actor who appeared in an episode of the TV show “Friday Night Lights,” who was charged with assaulting police officers with a crutch.

On Thursday, President Biden’s speech in the Capitol’s Statuary Hall was hailed as perhaps the best of his presidency. It was memorable and a long time coming.

Since his inauguration – for nearly a year – President Biden had never as commander-in-chief taken such a direct, aggressive tone against the former guy and his falsehoods, or against those who continue to enable him.

He finally put the nightmare of what happened that day in context.

“You can’t love your country only when you win. You can’t obey the law only when it’s convenient. You can’t be patriotic when you embrace and enable lies,” Biden said.

He finally stood up to those who were responsible.

“I will stand in this breach. I will defend this nation. And I will allow no one to place a dagger at the throat of our democracy,” said the president.

And by finally doing so, he helped us to begin healing as a nation.

“The way you have to heal, you have to recognize the extent of the wound. You can’t pretend. This is serious stuff,” Biden said.

At last, Joe called bullshit. Straight, no chaser.

I’ll sleep better tonight.

If not, I’m pretty sure I’ll hear from Lt. Columbo in the morning.