But you know I know when it's a dream I think I know,

“I mean, oh yes, but it's all wrong
That is I think I disagree….”

Last night before going to bed, I was reminded of the pivotal jazz rock band, Dreams.  Founded in the late Sixties/early Seventies by Jeff Kent (keyboards, guitar and vocals) and Doug Lubahn (bass and vocals) the band also included the Brecker brothers (Randy on trumpet and flugelhorn, and Michael on tenor sax and flute) Billy Cobham, Jr. (drums and percussion) Barry Rogers (trombone and Wagner Tuba, who also was a stalwart of the classic 1962 Eddie Palmieri band, La Perfecta,) Edward Vernon (vocals) and John Abercrombie (lead guitar.) While Dreams was critically noted for its spontaneous, improvisational style with all members playing in unison in the recording studio (no individual tracks/instrument,) the group only produced two LPS.

But this posting is not about Dreams…or maybe it is.

This posting is not about Dreams or other jazz rock bands like Blood, Sweat and Tears, Chicago, Ten Wheel Drive, Cold Blood, Mandrill or even the classic R'n'B and Soul horn bands that used to flourish in popular music.

This posting is not about Dreams or maybe it is.

So, you are probably wondering “where the hell is he going with this rift.”  And no, I will not pester you about what you dreamt last night though I know you probably did, dream(s) that is!

So, here is where I am going.

Dr. Victor Garlock featured speaker, "word, revisited" April 12, 2018

Last evening, well over eighty folks were captivated by aspects of dreams and hypnosis that permeated Dr. Victor P. Garlock’s featured presentation at “word, revisited” convened at the Carriage House Theater and hosted by the Cayuga Museum, Olive Trees and aaduna. 

A noted scholar, researcher, and clinician, Dr. Garlock read brief passages from his book, Your Genius Within: Understanding Sleep, Dream Interpretation and Learning Self-Hypnosis, a five-star Amazon best-seller in its category. The bulk of his presentation was spirited with vignettes regarding hypnosis and dreams, and the power within each of these forces, and how ordinary people can channel these situations to achieve a higher level of self-understanding.

Audience participation at Dr. Victor Garlock's presentation, "word, revisited" Carriage House Theater (photo by:  Christopher Molloy

Victor intrigued his audience when he led the group through two safe and relaxed exercises to show the power of mild hypnotic suggestion.  After each of these exercises, the audience was surprised and captivated by the group response. His ability to convey complex phenomena in layperson’s language enabled his audience to open up and pepper the Q and A period with interesting questions and comments about the variety of dream situations and the impact of hypnosis.  In fact, an audience member shared the fact that she saw Dr. Garlock in 1980 to treat her “addiction” to smoking. To his pleasant surprise, she also shared that his approach was quite effective and enabled her to stop that habit since she saw him. 

When the session came to closure, many audience members sought out Dr. Garlock for more conversation, comments, and have him autograph purchased books.  {Prior to the start of the event, Victor privately shared that he was donating all proceeds from the sale of his book to the museum to assist that institution’s work.}        

After an intermission, the evening’s emcee, Ron Van Nostrand kicked off the open mic session by reading some of his work. He was followed to the podium by Ann Scholl, Jim Spencer, Debra Brillati, Ron Newman, and Jeffrey-Paul Horn.  These poets, writers and storytellers weaved interesting tales regarding dreams, pure light in the darkness of night; six decades of marriage supplemented by fishing, fear of snakes and private exposure.  The open mic sessions also produced themes dealing with “and so we drink,” double dares, temptations paralleled by stoning and sacrifice and unconditional love; raining frogs, Chinese prostitution, and the multi-dimensional persona of the poet coupled with ideas of carnivals, clowns, and ordinary people.

And did I mention dreams, a re-occurring nuanced topic throughout the open mic period?

When the evening ended, people continued to linger, chat, and simply enjoyed the company of others. 

Dreams…who would have known!!??

The power.

Thank you Victor Garlock!

(Left to Right)  bill berry, Jr. CEO/Publisher aaduna, Inc., Dr. Victor Garlock (featured speaker) Ron VanNostrand, Publisher/Olive Trees, Kirsten Wise, Curator/Cayuga Museum & Eileen McHugh, Executive Director/Cayuga Museum

Front row from left to right: Ron Newman, Dr. Victor Garlock, Debra Brillati, Ann Scholl, and Ron VanNostrand. Second row on top: bill berry, jr., Jim Spencer, Jeffrey-Paul Horn, Eileen McHugh, and Kirsten Wise.

N.B. And thank you Lennon and McCartney for your opening words.

****

“word, revisited” is exclusively sponsored by Cayuga Museum of History and Art, Olive Trees, and aaduna every 2nd and 4th Thursday through mid-June in the museum’s Carriage House Theater, Auburn, NY. Open mic sign-up starts at 5:30 PM with the evening starting at 6. A cash bar is available for wine, beer, soft drinks, water, and snacks. Admission is $3/person and all proceeds go to and benefit the museum. 

_____________________________

aaduna - an online adventure with words and images - a globally read, multi-cultural, and diverse online literary and visual arts journal established in 2010.  Visit us at www.aaduna.org where we put measurable actions to our words.

Help us build community!  Share with your friends,  "like" our Aaduna-Inc facebook page and follow us on twitter @ aadunaspeaks !  

 aaduna-Inc  Visit regularly for updates !

 @aadunaspeaks