This Morning, I was awaken from a strange dream:
I went to this hawker center (in U.S. I think) rather excited because it looks like Penang's hawker center. Two brothers sat at to share my table. I ordered from two stalls: fried noodle (which never really came) and from another stall some pork belly (which did came but wasn't really the right organ, pork intestine maybe?). I think the way the center operated was eat first, pay later (typical American system, influence of tipping culture).
I remember seeing the two brothers who came later than me, got theirs and eating two plates of fried noodles. As I was waiting for mine to come for a long time, one of the brother passed me a half eaten plate of fried noodle but was decorated like it's new and uneaten. I thought it was a new plate from the stall at first that I had missed seeing the hawker giving it to me. But when I carefully examined that it was half eaten, the brothers began to apologize that they had accidentally eaten my plate. I actually believed them at the time and thought it was some honest mistake.
I went to the stall and asked where was mine. They thought they had given it to me after asking me my table number (#10). The lady at the stall immediately tried to make me new one but I insisted I was full eating the other disk before and do not wish to wait any longer, she gave me 5 cent as an apology. They realized their mistake when I told them that I wasn't with those two siblings at table #10.
I only realized that I might have been cheated by the brothers when I woke up. And also after waking up, I realized perhaps this was why in Penang, you don't usually pay the hawkers first or last, but at the time they bring you your food. To avoid confusion like this, when more than one family shares a table.
This was not the first dream that I had which seems to be "teaching" me the kind of lesson that I have not thought of before, as if externally and not based on information I already have internally. I don't remember the details of the other dreams of such category, but I do remember having them. This is perhaps beyond lucid dreams.