NO! My alarm didn’t go off !, I think to myself as adrenaline shoots through my body and I throw back the covers. I try to stand up quickly, but my stiff muscles slow me down. Foggy-brained, I reach up with both arms to stretch and then try to hurry into the bathroom. Except the bathroom is not there. Instead, there is a long hallway with doors on both sides. Ignoring this strange situation, I decide to just get dressed because I must get going or I’ll miss the race. But where is my closet? Where is my dresser? Something strange is going on and it’s going to make me late! Why do races have to start so early?

My feet start moving towards where the long hallway was a few minutes earlier. But now I see a city street. I’m outside now? Guess I’ll just head over to the race. If I hurry, I can make it! I don’t have my car, so I start off down the sidewalk, passing shops and people, none that look familiar. But I’m on a mission. Packet Pickup has already started and I must get my bib. I’ve trained hard for this race and I’ll be so mad if I have to start late, but I guess that’s better than missing it altogether.  But which way do I go?
I decide to ask someone where the park is, but suddenly there are no people anywhere and I am out on a lonely road. Feeling increasingly frustrated and anxious, I start to worry that I will not make it on time. Wait, there is a group of people ahead in that park that just came out of nowhere! I think I see a starting line! Jogging through some tall weeds and into a forest, I seem to get further away instead of closer. But suddenly I’m there and I have my bib in hand and I’m trying to pin it on, but my hands aren’t working.

Ready, GO! The starting gun goes off and I see a crowd of runners moving across the finish line and disappearing around a corner through some trees.  That’s it, I’m left behind. Realizing I have no shoes on, I bend down to put them on, then , forgetting the bib, I just start running. At first I see no other runners ahead, but after a minute,  one appears. I start to say something, but they disappear again. I’ll just keep going, I think. But there are no race markers and I am lost. Out of nowhere a tunnel materializes and I assume that must be where everyone went. Entering the dark tunnel, I can hardly see anything. The tunnel seems to be shrinking and the light is getting dimmer. I start to panic in the claustrophobic space.

Miraculously I run out of the dark and into full daylight. But there are no runners in sight. I stop running and catch my breath as I look around to get my bearings. I’ve never been in this place before.  I guess this race wasn’t meant to be. I trained and I did everything I could to get there. Disappointed, I take out my cell phone to call my husband to pick me up. But I can’t remember the number. I try to dial and it changes into a calculator. I start to get suspicious. What is going on?

Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! My alarm goes off. I open my eyes and laugh to myself. What a dream that was!