I have very real memories of being in a plain-looking room with other people. I'm guessing about 18 others. Our clothing was simple and subtle in color, styles were varying but similar. Some beings were holding what looked like coffee cups - and there was an area in the room with someone offering these drinks. I don't think money played any part in this, it never came up and I am sure I wasn't carrying any. I don't recall seeing purses or wallets with anyone. After what seemed like a short wait a man opened the door, exposing the most vibrant of colors.
We all made our way outside and were met with the most beautiful view! In front of us were two rivers right next to one another. A short section of grassed-earth separated them. The grass was so green, flowers of brilliant hues were scattered about and we seemed so high up! We were either on a mountain top or a big hill.
We all jumped in the river - some into the first, some into the second. Which river you jumped into did make a difference. I just don't recall the details of that difference. I was supposed to, or chose to, jump into the first river. Once in the water I remember feeling free, excited, happy, and dry - I recall not feeling the water the way we do in the physical body. I could see perfectly under water and the fish were not only the same size as me but at least one that swam right next to me, as if meant to accompany me on this journey, spoke to me telepathically. I wish I could remember what we talked about but I don't.
The most important part about this dream is that by jumping into the river I was now on my way to becoming a human; I would soon be in a physical body. There was no apprehension, no confusion, nothing but peace and that excitement I spoke of.
Sure, it sounds like a nice story. Sounds "out there." What I can say is that this dream has greatly effected me. First, I had it as a memory (perhaps due to a dream I forgot about, perhaps not). Many years later I had it as a dream. It is one of those stand-out dreams where you wake up feeling it had tremendous meaning, it was deju vu, it was an "aha moment," it seemed totally unlike anything one could experience here on Earth, etc. What is it to me? It FEELS like truth. It stands out like a sore thumb in my brain and it never leaves me.
Update: I decided, after all of these years, to do a little research on the Internet about other people's experiences. Here's some of what I found:
1. Betty Eadie's book "The Ripple Effect" describes "life as a river": It concerns how we choose our destinies before our birth and how it is analogous to standing on top of a very high mountain and looking down upon a vast system of rivers and choosing which river to undertake. From the vantage point of being on top of a mountain, we can get a good view all the rivers from their beginning to their end. As in life, each river has a number of forks and branches to choose from. Some rivers are more challenging while others are less challenging. Some rivers are very dangerous and can lead to disaster. But no matter which river of life we choose before our birth, the river will always carry us back to the sea. This means we are all predestined to eventually return to God. But once we begin our journey down the river of our choosing, we have many choices which are not predetermined.
2. A toddler called Daniel, spoke of his experiences to his mother when he was two and a half, when he saw the sea for the first time in his life. His mother Greta said, "I thought that his eyes were going to pop out of his head. He ran straight in and started dancing up and down." Then Daniel told her, "I had to go into the water to get born, Mummy, it wasn't the same as the sea though. It was a river." Asked where that was, he replied: "You know Heaven, where all the little boys and girls live before they are born. It's where the river was."