The Day the Rhinoceros Jumped Out of My House

It was only a dream. I woke up not in a cold sweat, just simply bemused.

The dream went like this: I'm inside a large building made up of a series of very intricate labyrinths. A large rhino is moving ahead of me. Apparently, it's my job to watch over the beast and not lose track of it.

I notice others moving through labyrinths also following animals, some large, some small. Just letting my eye wander for a split second - and my rhino has disappeared.

I dash all over the place, finally come to the street level of the building where I find a warehouse door and an office. Two men are sitting in the office. I ask them if they've seen a rhinoceros running around. One of them asks me if it was a large rhino or a small one. Large, I tell him.

"Oh, we let him out the door."

"Why did you do that?" I shout. I'm really upset! I pull the chain that rolls up the huge door. Frantic, I run down a ramp and into the streets in search of my rhino.

This is where the dream ends.

A few days after this dream I had an opportunity to attend a dream workshop. A group of twelve participants. The leader asks for volunteers with dreams the group will work on, only three dreams tonight. Quickly, I raise my hand to be one of the volunteers.

This was a very astute group. It was quickly decided that the rhino represented my raw animal-self, whom ordinarily I was able to keep track of and control. However, from time to time it seemed, the rhino was capable of running away with me. The two men, aspects of myself, in charge of keeping the door shut, had fallen down on the job.

I am known to the group as a mild-mannered individual, consderate of others - that sort of characterization. But upon occasion, I could be a rude and wild as that rhino. At times, they stated, I let my rhino out.

Wow! My reaction was, wow. It was a revelation for me. Yet, I was still unaware of these rhino episodes. When did they happen? Why did I go unconscious when they did happen?

My wife, Margot, is a member of this dream group. We went home discussing the problem of my unconscious state when the rhinno would break loose. She knew, but I was still baffled.

Then the very next evening, we had three friends as guests for dinner. The evening was delightful, full of witty conversation that went in all directions.

Toward the end of the evening, I had the impulse to state the obvious, namely, that we were having such a good time talking.

"We've mentioned just about every topic under the sun, except politics and religion."

At that point, the conversation veered to - you guessed it - politics and religion. My wife groaned. She doesn't enjoy it when we men get into these themes, bad mouthing the opposing views as we ramble on.

And when I turned to the only other woman in our intimate circle and asked her about her political views (we had only recently become acquainted) she demured. And I insisted.

"We all must take a stand on these issues. It's important that we stand up and be counted."

Everyone looked at me. Blank faces.

Suddenly, Margot stabbed me with her finger. "Now you've done it!"

"Done what?"

"You've let your rhinoceros out! Get it?"

I felt my face go red. But then I had to smile at myself. Yes, I got it! Finally got it!