les essenes

i dreamed i was at my mother's house. we had guests, and there was a sort of banquet going on. it was night. there were all sorts of people. some family. i was looking out the window, hearing a noise like a rush of wings. a flock of birds had landed in the great tree just outside. i could make out their dark shapes against the night sky, like leaves, they filled the great tree. i was tinking about looking at them, and suddenly i was outside, floating about between the tree and the house. i saw that the birds were actually figures, shapes of men in the tree. in my mind, i was told they were essenes. i marvelled at them, dressed in rags, or skins. on the rooftop hundreds of candles had been lit, little tealights, flickering in the darkness. i felt wonder and anticipation and peacefulness, the way a child feels on christmas eve.