I dreamt I was in a bookstore that was closing down and getting rid of its inventory. The shelves were half empty and I was just wandering around looking for anything of interest. I knelt down to pick up some books about Douglas MacArthur. One was American Caesar by William Manchester . The other book was Camp David Days -- chronicling MacArthur's years as president of the United States. The second book is a piece of fiction manufactured by my hippocampus and subconscious. As I stood up to browse the American Caesar I felt someone looking over my shoulder. When I turned around I was shocked to see General Douglas MacArthur standing behind me! I was shocked because even in my dream I remembered that he died in 1964 but was so excited to meet him face to face that I just decided to conveniently ignore that fact. He was dressed in his khaki uniform and was not wearing his hat. He didn't say much, I was doing most of the talking: thanking him for "returning," for being such a great leader -- I went on and on. I pointed to a map in the book to show him where the US Army marched through a town where my mother lived when she was a child. In spite of my gushing he was quite gracious.
When I woke up I was struck by how intense I felt during the dream. I've mentioned it to a few people but for the most part I try to keep in mind that my dreams are in all likelihood only interesting to me and I should resist at all cost the urge to interject the subject of MacArthur into most conversations. I should mention that I had this dream shortly after I finished reading American Caesar and undoubtedly, the book left quite an impression on me. It felt like of a visitation -- The General returning one more time to receive the thanks of a grateful citizen.