At the time I took responsibility for Dream Network, I was fortunate to be able to make contact with all but one of the previous editors and get statements from them about our history, all the way back to 1982. This is significant, important information, as we have been, together, pioneering in this “field of dreams.”

We know that the publication was initiated in 1982 with the intention of bringing dreams back to dreamers; to acknowledge the fact that that we all dream every night and that we have a birthright to learn and understand the meaning of our dreams.  Dream Network was born in the spirit of being a grassroots publication and it has remained so over the past 23 years. We couldn't have succeeded this long without the dedication, sacrifice and effort that countless people have volunteered over the years.

Dream Network was first published as a Bulletin and appeared in print through the determination of a very fiery and compassionate young man by the name of William (Bill) Stimson. Here's an excerpt from his inaugural article entitled, "Armed with our Dreams:"

"Armed with our dreams, we have a weapon that can turn this society upside down by turning our lives around. The greatest battles waged throughout history have been within the souls of a few brave men and women. To work with dreams in the deepest sense is to be a leader in the revolution of human consciousness."

I wrote Bill—who has become a cherished friend—and asked him if he'd be willing to share a few words. Bill's statement is the essence, the Spirit, that guides the Dream Network:

"The Dream Network is not the publication; the enterprise proper isn't a publishing one. To speak the truth of what the Dream Network is about for us is to find our myth, and where else but among our dreams? It is for us to use our dreams in a way that enables us to come together honestly and deeply, for what was broken to be rendered whole again; our community with one another, our connection with our deeper selves, our oneness in purpose, our ability and our resolve to embody the Light itself. What makes the Dream Network special is that it is fundamentally different. People sense this somehow and so they've helped the energy and unfoldment move forward."

During Bill's time, there were other dream-inspired publications coming out in different parts of the country that were Dream Network affiliate publications. One of them was called Fusion. I believe it came out of Seattle. There was another called DreamCraft, which came out of the northeast. There was apparently a big stir of energy happening at the time which has been growing ever since.

Barbara Shor (now departed)—who was a very good friend and part of the original New York dream community generated by Bill Stimson—had this to say about Bill:

"In my mind's eye is Bill Stimson's small, walk-up flat on a hot summer's night... the beginnings of the New York dream community. We never formed a tight-knit group because the people kept changing too often for that. The room was usually crowded...15 to 20 people. Essentially, we knew nothing about dreams, but Bill's enthusiasm and passion for dreams was contagious!

It was a dream whose time had come, like the classic dream of finding yourself in your own home but entering a new room that you've never been in before. We were electrified! This group was the core of the New York dream community and the New York dream community was the core of the early dream movement in the United States. Although we couldn't articulate it at the time, I think we realized that we now had a mission in life. We were converts to dreams. Was it Bill's vision of a global network of dreamers we were envisioning or did it arise spontaneously among us? I don't know, but it was powerful. When Bill got an idea, he didn't rest until he got it out there. He was the prototype of the populist networker, the Trotsky of the dream revolution. It might have happened without him, but it never would have been so fast, so intense, so like a prairie fire in a season of drought. Maybe this was the next step after the revolutionary 60's. That world-changing vision hadn't fully worked, so maybe we had to go back to the inner drawing board, and remake the world from the individual psyche's infrastructure inside out, instead of the other way around."

“I shortly went nuts and found out about the Brooklyn Dream Community and also the Manhattan Dream Community, where I met Bill Stimson and we attended a weekend leadership training workshop at Monte Ullman's north of the city. Bill was despairing of the Dream Network at the time and wanted to hand it to someone else, so I took responsibility for the publication for a couple of years. I've led dream groups and also studied psychology but dumped the professional side to help Dale w/our kids. I like the term, ‘amateur psychologist.’

“I believe that the unconscious is God and that dreams are the best path to understanding God within and the interconnectedness of all people. Creativity is the blood of God and dreams are nothing if not creative, always in the service of self-awareness, not always comfortably but always accurately.”

In June 1989, literally on summer solstice, I was informed that the Bay Area Dream Workers had accepted my offer to take responsibility for the publication. I KNEW at that moment, how a butterfly feels coming out of its cocoon!

During this past decade+, we've evolved, naturally, many new dimensions to the publication:

• One of the first steps we took was to develop a Council of Advisors, and I'd like to acknowledge and thank those people who have served in this capacity over the years as they have been of inestimable help, if even just by virtue of allowing their endorsement to Dream Network: Stanley Krippner, Ph. D., dreamer, researcher, author and Director of Saybrook Institute San Francisco, CA., has been with us from Day One (God Bless you, Stanley); Russell Lockhart, Ph.D., Jungian analyst, author of Psyche Speaks, Words As Eggs and countless articles, cherished by many as an "Artist of the Soul"; Rosemary Watts, visionary dreamer, actress, singer and dream educator; Noreen Wessling, visionary dreamer, drummer, artist, you name it, Noreen's done or doing it!; Robert Moss, shaman, visionary dreamer and a literal Comet lighting up the planet with his teachings, audio tapes and many books focused on dreaming; Dr. Montague Ullman and Jeremy Taylor, both authors of excellent books focused on dreams, both pioneers in the 'socialization' of dreams, dreamwork and dream groups; Deborah J. Hillman, gentle soul, therapist, artist. All of these individuals and so many more not mentioned provide the guidance and energy that keeps Dream Network alive.
  
  
• We made a decision to focus each issue around a question or a theme and that has worked very well. It narrows the focus so that we aren't wandering too far out, all over creation, as do our dreams.
  
  
• We've developed a Statement of Purpose, currenly revised.
  
  
• In the last few years, we've activated the title of the publication by encouraging committed and knowledgeable dreamworkers around the world to become listed in each issue as Networkers/Contact Persons. Each has offered to be there for you, to respond to your calls, your questions, your needs, to point you to resources, to point you to existing dream groups or help you form dream groups. These individuals are willing to share their resources and make the path smoother for new seekers than it was for us.
  
  
• We've evolved from what was a 24-page to 52 page publication.
  
  
• In order to make our information available to more people, we established a presence and identity on the Internet via the development of a website in 1995 that continues to be an incredible experience, to say the least.
  
  
• Three years ago, we began publishing an exact replica of the print publication (in .pdf format) on our website, making the information/publication more readily available and affordable worldwide, more palatable to our environmentally-conscious members and offering double-exposure for our advertisers.
  
  
• We've published a subject-specific booklet that's composed of articles drawn from our very rich archives, The Art of Dreamsharing and Developing Dream Groups. Another booklet has just been made available, authored by Janice Hinshaw Baylis on Dreams and Relationships. We plan to publish a series of booklets to bring forth so many of these beautiful words of wisdom, experience, and articles that have been seen only by a relatively small handful of people over the past 23 years.
  
  
• We are being distributed nationally.
  

A Look Into the Future