Last night I had a nightmare.

It was Friday afternoon and my Shabbos candles were all prepared.  But I was busy doing other things and lost track of time.  I finally, panic-stricken, looked at my watch and noticed that it was 7:38 pm.  I asked my friend Rivki Silver, “What time is shkia (sundown)??”  But she just looked at me sorrowfully and shook her head from side to side.  I then saw that her candles were lit, understood that it was already Shabbos, and realized that my hands were still busy with non-Shabbos activity.
I started to cry, gazing at the pathetic sight of my unlit and forgotten candles, overwhelmed with loss, grief, and regret.  I could never redo this moment.  Never.  I woke up, still making crying sounds, flooded with relief that, indeed, it was only a dream.