Frank woke up in his latest “flop house,” the small equipment bunker near the mural festooned underpass, and promptly banged his head on what he hoped was a water pipe. If it was gas, his willpower to continue his smoking abstinence would get a bit stronger. He needed to wrap some towels around that pipe to prevent morning headaches, those not inflicted by alcohol.

It was a bit cramped but thankfully it no longer housed any equipment. He had “procured” a pillow and some other bedding material from a previous stay at one of cities fine cheap hotels. He had also obtained a battery powered lamp from a surplus store. He was not afraid of the dark, contrary to any rumors that former paramours may have spread. He just valued light.

This was the first morning he woke up in this concrete hotel and would continue to add some items to make this man cave a bit more homey. Maybe even a battery powered TV but first he needed quite a few more “stickups”. They were overmatched by the odor of a collection of various things he hoped were non toxic. Some people in the same situation would be in deep despair as to where his life had gone. Frank Bronski was not one of those, he was not built to feel sorry for himself. He had a place rent free and off the radar of people looking for him, at least until someone decided they could rent the place out.

It was a surprisingly quiet night and he slept deeply until the early morning when he woke up after a series of vivid dreams. Strangely they all maintained the same theme not unlike the concept albums of the 70’s. Google it or DuckDuckGo it or use whatever search engine you like. It used to be a thing. The theme as far as he pieced it together appeared to be American Indian folklore. Frank was not an expert but any resident of Boulder is familiar with some of it.

Chief Niwot had appeared in his first dream and was his tour guide for the remainder of the dream. The Chief had introduced some characters that were current inhabitants of the overpass mural. All were animals and represented qualities in Native American Folklore.

An eagle appeared and the Chief pointed out it was revered by Native American cultures as a sacred creature embodying courage, vision, and spiritual insight.

Following the eagle a snake made an entrance and the Chief continued his narration . “The snake’s ability to shed its skin is a metaphor for renewal and transformation and used in spiritual and healing practices in many cultures”.

Next up in the animal parade were Owls and Crows and the Chief explained that birds often serve to foretell change. In a quiet but powerful voice the Chief stated that , “Owls are associated with wisdom and knowledge. Some people think crows are omens of death but in the Native American culture it is just the opposite, seeing a crow is considered good luck by many tribes.”

The last creature Frank recalled was a frog who hopped onto the scene with a he casual but cool demeanor that reminded him of young Christopher Walken complete with a kind but mischievous smile and a hint of danger.

Franks thoughts were interrupted by the Chief’s voice. For a brief second he had been so enraptured by the frog he had forgotten about Chief Niwot.“Frogs are considered medicine animals by some tribes and have healing powers and the ability to bring rain. In some tribes, frogs represent transformation and growth. In other tribes they are associated with springtime and renewal. To some cultures, the Frog is a mythological character who killed their Creator with witchcraft. Among the tribes of Panama the rare golden frog is associated with fertility, wealth, and a happy afterlife.”

“Which one do we have here,” asked Frank nodding towards the Frog who appeared deep in concentration although Frank could swear he was snoring.

“Only time will tell,” replied the Chief as he faded away and Frank woke up.

Frank had the sense there was more to the dream or at least should be since it didn’t cover all of the characters on the mural. He was hoping that something would nudge his memory towards recalling more. In the absence of more details he could hope the dream was the first in a series of installments to be visited upon him. If all else fails there was the internet. He was sure he could find good information eventually. It would just take time to sort through the pretenders and he hoped that curious locals added theories frequently.

Note: I found the information on Native American Indian folklore from Frank’s dream on Native Languages of the Americas website.