Dreams of darkness and nightmares

Last night I had a nightmare that featured an old friend whom I’ve not seen or spoken to in several years. “Debbie” is a Protestant minister who semi-retired and moved to Florida a couple of years ago. I had met her when my husband and I were dating almost a decade ago. She lives on the gulf coast of Florida, in a small town that’s not too far south of the Tampa Bay. In the dream I had gone down to visit Debbie, and her church was within sight of the water. But a dark miasma of evil had crept over her sanctuary which I soon discovered was emanating from something sinister nearby. Upon approaching the front steps of the church I could see what the problem was. Framed by a threatening and stormy sky stood the two towers of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge upon the horizon just beyond the steeple of the church. That steel and concrete demonic roadway loomed large in the background, casting its evil aura far and wide. Blustery winds whipped nearby palm trees as the sky grew darker. The fear was thick like a fog as Debbie and I ascended the steps and entered the church. Inside, the altar was dark and not a shred of sunlight was able to penetrate the gloomy clouds to illuminate the stained glass windows behind it. The dreadful bridge was framed by one of the clear glass windows near the foyer, and it was impossible to escape its influence. Somehow its darkness had infested Debbie’s parish, causing bad things to happen to people and driving away the congregation. It was up to Debbie (no idea why she brought me along, perhaps for moral support, I suppose) to try and summon the power of God to banish the sinister forces. I don’t remember what was said, only that Debbie and I approached the altar to pray. The terror was overwhelming, as the black shadow of the beast of Tampa Bay seemingly smothered everything around us. There was of course no safety from it in the sanctuary, as it too was enveloped in that infernal umbra. Quite literally, there was no where to hide.

I woke up before there was any conclusion to this dream, which ended with Debbie and I facing the evil that had been foisted upon us by the Skyway Bridge. This dream had the same existential dread as some of those I had earlier this year. In all of them, the bridge was like a beacon radiating darkness into the world around it, inspiring the most intense fear imaginable. The theme of this recent dream was seeing the bridge and its towers looming in the background like an all encompassing threat to sanity and to life itself. It was inescapable. I could not believe that the apparent dark forces that occupied the bridge had managed to reach out and infest nearby places, especially a church.

Dreams like this pique my curiosity even more with regards to Tampa’s concrete and metal monster. I’ve never had nightmares about any other bridge, not the New River Gorge or nor the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Not even the creepy Key Bridge. But these dreams are so intense, and so full of mind numbing terror that they stand out among my typical dreams and nightmares. They are also very real, almost as if I am actually there. It is well known that the Chesapeake Bay Bridge can, because of the way it is constructed and laid out, mess with the minds of some of those who cross it. This ability to inflict bridge related phobias upon drivers has everything to do with the features and structure of the bridge itself. Additionally its location along with severe storms, fog and winter weather conspire to make for challenging driving conditions at times and some rather daunting visuals. But what of the Skyway Bridge? While winter weather isn’t a factor, its locale does see plenty of storms, especially tropical storms and hurricanes. Given its apparent steep ascent and the sight of it lording high over the water, I have no doubt that there are some who are likewise struck with fear in the same way are those who develop a phobia on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. In addition are those who already have such phobias and either refuse to cross or must cower in the passenger seat (or backseat) in order to make it across. However, there is something else going on here. It’s true there have been lots of deaths at the site of this bridge, including the accident that toppled the original structure. But the Skyway does not stand alone in that regard. Several other North American bridges have high body counts, but I don’t have nightmares about them. There is something that distinguishes this bridge from all others. I can’t yet figure it out, but I am hoping to one day. At some point I do plan on paying it a visit so I can take a drive across it. Now I feel like I just have to know why I keep having such nightmares.