I was dreaming. Dreaming of a far-off land. There were houses and huts. People were walking alongside animals. I saw a man with a huge green snake around his neck, a woman riding on the back of a bear, a little girl with a monkey, a middle-aged man with a hawk on his shoulder, a bald man with a mountain lion - there's too much for me to tell.

In my dream, I was walking. And as I did, I felt a presence beside me. A shadow of some sort. It was very small, like a puppy. I saw the little ...