I dreamt last night that I had breakfast with C.S. Lewis. He was seated on my left at a round table in what seemed to be a small dining room that had been turned into a library. Books and newspapers were strewn all over the table. He was in such good spirits and laughing and cracking jokes and seemed genuinely happy that I was dining with him. We were discussing some of his books and he kept making me laugh with his brilliant wit.
In the middle of my next question I stopped to mention that "I must say, Mr. Lewis, that you are much more pleasant and cheerful than I thought you'd be. You know I have the highest regard for you, but I suppose that I always thought you'd be rather dour; a melancholic rather than a sanguine. I am as surprised as I am pleased by your buoyant disposition"
His big smile grew wider as I told him this, there was a warm look in his eyes of genuine gratitude mixed with a twinkle of sly wisdom. "Why, that is very kind of you to say. I am always grateful to hear that. You've read my book 'Surprised by Joy'. Why would you think that we'd be anything but joyful all the time here? What is sad is that we didn't realize that we had good reasons to live life like this down there."
In the next second the whole setting evaporated as if being sucked up some big vacuum tube and I awoke, smiling, awestruck, content, and grateful.