There I was, standing in front of a seemingly endless pool. It appeared so vast, I could hardly encapsulate it with one look. It was shaped like a sort of rectangular 8, with the two rectangles joined, and one could swim from the first pool to the farthest pool through what seemed a shallow corridor of water.

In the first pool, people were swimming and basking, clearly enjoying themselves, unaware that in the farthest pool, which was totally empty, the hotel management had devised a special attraction...

This second pool had wild dolphins roaming freely through it. And, lucky for me, I was apparently the only person in on the secret that day. I entered the water and started swimming, making my way towards the second pool. As I reached it, I felt the texture of the water change. Its temperature became cooler and I glided through it with increased fluidity. After a few yards, I caught a glimpse of a fin, and I knew the dolphins were near.

Suddenly, I felt the water move below me, a soft current, and a dolphin emerged right in front of me. I was mesmerized. I felt the smooth current again below me, and suddenly, I was surroundered. The dolphins were everywhere. I reached out and let my hand slide on the rubber-like texture of their skins, respectfully avoiding the eyes and the head.

I was inside this strange man-made lagoon, in front of a modern skyscraper hotel, in the middle of civilization, and I was swimming with wild dolphins only I appeared to notice. The moment felt both surreal and enchanted. I slid through the dark blue pool, the dolphins alongside me, my hand on a fin which pulled me forward. It felt like time had stopped and I was engulfed in a capsule of eternity. I wanted the dolphins to take me. My joy was intense, enthralling, it washed over me - I was dizzy with it.

I don't recall how much time passed thus, but I suddenly saw my parents standing at the far end of the pool, talking in front of an artificial cave that was part of the backdrop. They were watching me swim. I exited the pool, put on a white bathrobe and joined them. They looked happy and younger, rejuvenated, barely older than fifty. They were smiling pleasantly, enjoying the classical music that could be heard through the speakers around the pool, observing that the hotel management had made a very fine job with the place and that it was very considerate of them to play classical music in this particular spot.

Mum enquired what opera it was. I instantly said: "Tannhauser", half marvelling at my own sudden and unexpected recognition of the piece. Dad nodded in disapproval: "No, it's Falstaff". I wanted to disagree, to tell him Falstaff was merely a recurring comical character in Shakespeare, or the title of an opera by Verdi, not by Wagner. But I kept quiet. After all, Dad's been dead for so long, and I'm so pleased to see him, to see us as a family again; it doesn't really matter if he's a little out of it.

Rêve n°3: Avec les dauphins du Grand Bleu

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