Dream painting: I'm a catgirl in Eden picking apples. A Christian in a suit points angrily at me and yells 'Drop 'em!' WINDFALLS IN EDEN

Dreamed 2000/3/30 by Chris Wayan

I live on a big walled estate called Eden. Contrary to popular belief, it's a co-operative resort. I'm part owner now, but I grew up poor, and it's hard to break old habits--like carrying a sack and scrounging fallen fruit off the ground. At this season, most of it's unripe, rotten, or wormy. Today, a few hard mangoes are about the best of Eden's haul.

And then I find a patch of windfall apples under a tree! I'm overjoyed. They're small, but sound and good.

As I fill my sack, a stranger comes up to me, red-faced, and yells "Leave my apples alone!" He's a newcomer I haven't met, though I heard he was renting a room in one of the caretakers' cottages.

He says "My Landlord promised me the rights to all the apples here."

I say "Well, the estate is big. I guess I can leave the apples near your cottage for you. I'll get mine elsewhere."

But that isn't good enough for this character.

"That's not what was promised me. I own them ALL."

"All?" I snort in astonishment. "Well... your landlord had no authority to give away my rights."

And after that, I ignore him. If he's crazy enough to believe one Landlord built and owns all of Eden, or that apples aren't for all... his delusions are his own problem.

I was willing to let him have this patch, if it matters so much to him, but if he pushes me any more, he'll regret it. Because snakes don't spoil the garden a bit...

But hogs do.

And if this hog doesn't quit, I'll have to throw him out.

NOTES NEXT MORNING
Painting of catgirl's head, profile, looking sidelong at us Painting of angry bearded man in navy suit, red tie, holding a book, pointing finger.

* Part-owner of Eden = I've half-forgotten my divine nature, so I'm reduced to scrounging! But it's no big deal--just an old habit.

* The gardener who plays landlord, falsely claims to own the whole garden = Yahweh!

* Credulous newcomer in Eden = Adam!

* False promises about apples and dominion over all nature's estate... sounds like Jehovah is the real estate snake here!

* ACTION = We are gods, never thrown out of Eden, limited only by our own attitude... and we make ourselves timid scroungers of windfalls, crumbs from the table we own! It's time to stand up to those who claim a God-given right to hog the world and rule us all. And yes, I do mean capitalists as well as fundamentalists. I think the real Cold War has just begun--it's between these two self-righteous groups, each of whom thinks God's given them the world.

And we, the sharers, may have to unite to fight them--the people who just have to order us around. Because they know they own it all.

Two red apples hanging from a tree

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