The Map of Forgotten Dreams
Benji discovers a magical map in his great-grandmother's music box that leads him to a realm where forgotten dreams wait to be returned to their dreamers.
- 7 min read
Benji found the map tucked inside his great-grandmother’s music box, right beneath where the tiny ballerina used to spin. The paper was soft as a whisper and covered in swirling silver lines that seemed to move when he wasn’t looking directly at them.
“What’s this, Gran?” Benji asked, holding it up to the afternoon light streaming through the window.
His great-grandmother adjusted her spectacles and smiled mysteriously. “That, my dear boy, is the Map of Forgotten Dreams. It shows the way to all the dreams people have misplaced over the years.”
“Dreams can’t get lost,” Benji said, though he wasn’t entirely sure.
“Oh, but they can,” Gran replied, settling into her rocking chair. “When people stop believing in them, dreams drift away like dandelion seeds. They float to a special place where they wait, hoping someone might find them again.”
That night, as Benji lay in bed with the map on his nightstand, something extraordinary happened. The silver lines began to glow with a gentle, moonbeam light. They swirled up from the paper like luminous smoke and formed a shimmering doorway right in the middle of his bedroom.
Benji’s heart thumped with excitement. He put on his slippers—the fuzzy ones shaped like dinosaur feet—and stepped through.
On the other side, Benji found himself standing on a path made entirely of puzzle pieces. Each piece was a different color, and when he stepped on them, they hummed little melodies. Above him stretched a sky filled with floating islands, each one trailing ribbons of starlight.
“Hello!” called a voice. “Are you here for the tour?”
Benji turned to see a small creature that looked like a cross between a rabbit and a butterfly. She had long, soft ears but delicate wings that sparkled with every color Benji could imagine—and a few he was pretty sure he’d never seen before.
“I’m Flutterby,” she said, hopping closer. “I’m the official guide of the Forgotten Dreams District. You must be here to help return some dreams?”
“I… I suppose so,” Benji said. “But I don’t know how.”
“That’s what the map’s for, silly!” Flutterby pointed one paw at the map, which had appeared in Benji’s hand. “See? It’s already showing you where to go first.”
Sure enough, a golden path was tracing itself across the map, leading to an island shaped like a giant book.
Together, Benji and Flutterby followed the puzzle-piece path until it lifted into the air, carrying them upward like a magical escalator. They floated past islands of every description—one made of cotton candy clouds, another that looked like a forest growing upside down, and one that appeared to be constructed entirely from children’s laughter.
They landed on the book-shaped island, and Benji gasped. Scattered everywhere were beautiful objects: a pair of ballet shoes that danced by themselves, a telescope that showed impossible galaxies, a paintbrush that painted with colors from emotions rather than tubes, and a tiny replica of the Eiffel Tower made from matchsticks.
“These are all dreams?” Benji whispered.
“Forgotten ones,” Flutterby said sadly. “This dream belongs to someone named Margaret. She wanted to be a storyteller, but she grew up and forgot all about it.”
Benji picked up a leather journal that glowed softly. The moment he touched it, he could somehow feel Margaret’s dream—the joy of creating worlds with words, the magic of making people smile with stories.
“How do I return it?” he asked.
“You have to take it to the Memory Garden,” Flutterby explained. “That’s where dreams go to wait for the right moment to remind people they exist.”
The map shifted again, and a new path appeared, this time made of rainbow-colored stones. Benji carefully tucked the glowing journal into his pajama shirt and followed Flutterby deeper into the realm of forgotten dreams.
They crossed a bridge made of linked paper chains and passed through a tunnel that echoed with long-ago wishes. Finally, they arrived at the most beautiful garden Benji had ever seen. Flowers grew there that bloomed with miniature scenes—a child’s first day at school, someone learning to ride a bicycle, a teenager writing their first song.
In the center stood an ancient tree with silver bark and leaves that chimed like bells. Around its base were thousands of small nests, each one waiting for a dream to return.
“Place it in an empty nest,” Flutterby instructed.
Benji found a cozy nest lined with soft moonbeams and gently set Margaret’s storytelling dream inside. Immediately, the journal transformed into a glowing seed that sank into the nest. The tree’s branches swayed, and one of its leaves detached, floating down into Benji’s hand. On it was written a single word: “Delivered.”
“When Margaret’s ready to remember,” Flutterby said, “the tree will send her dream back to her, maybe in a different way. Perhaps she’ll suddenly want to write again, or she’ll feel inspired to tell her grandchildren stories.”
“That’s wonderful!” Benji exclaimed.
“But there are more dreams to find,” Flutterby said. “Look at your map.”
Several more golden paths had appeared. Benji and Flutterby set off on their mission, visiting island after island. They found a dream of becoming an astronaut, tucked inside a rocket made of wishes. They discovered a dream of opening a bakery, hidden in an oven that baked clouds into different shapes. They even found a child’s dream of having a treehouse, waiting patiently in a tree that grew toys instead of fruit.
Each dream they collected felt different to Benji—some were warm and cozy, others were exciting and wild, and some were quiet and gentle. But all of them were precious.
As they placed the seventh dream into the Memory Garden, Benji noticed the sky beginning to lighten.
“Is it morning already?” he asked.
“In your world, yes,” Flutterby said. “You’ll need to go back soon. But Benji, you’ve done something very special tonight. You’ve helped seven dreams find their way to where they can be remembered.”
“Can I come back?” Benji asked hopefully.
“The map will glow whenever there are dreams that need finding,” Flutterby promised. “And you’re now an official Dream Finder. That’s a very important job.”
She handed him a small badge made of starlight that immediately pinned itself to his pajamas.
“Will you be okay here by yourself?” Benji asked, suddenly worried about leaving his new friend.
Flutterby’s wings fluttered happily. “Oh, I’m not alone! There are many creatures here who help care for the forgotten dreams. And besides, now I have a friend in your world. That makes me very happy.”
The puzzle-piece path appeared again, leading back to the glowing doorway. Benji could see his bedroom through it, looking exactly as he’d left it.
“Goodbye, Flutterby,” Benji said, giving her a gentle hug.
“Goodbye, Benji. Dream well, and remember—never forget your own dreams. They’re the most important ones of all.”
Benji stepped through the doorway and found himself back in his bed. The map lay on his nightstand, looking like ordinary paper once more—though if you looked very closely, you might still see the faintest shimmer of silver lines.
He touched the spot on his pajamas where the badge had been. It had vanished, but somehow, Benji knew it was still there, invisible and magical, waiting for his next adventure.
As he snuggled under his covers, Benji thought about all the dreams he’d helped rescue. He wondered whose dreams they’d been and hoped that somewhere, people would wake up feeling inspired to remember the things they’d once loved.
And as sleep began to tug at him, Benji made a promise to himself: he would never forget his own dreams, whatever they might be. He would keep them safe and close, like treasures in his heart.
That night, Benji had the most wonderful dream. He dreamed he was riding on Flutterby’s back, soaring between the floating islands, with the Map of Forgotten Dreams glowing brightly in his hands and hundreds of dreams swirling around them like fireflies, all on their way home.
And in the morning, when Gran asked him if he’d slept well, Benji just smiled and said, “I had the most amazing adventure.”
Gran smiled back, her eyes twinkling. “I thought you might,” she said, and she didn’t seem surprised at all.
The End