a dream remembered?

i had this dream and just woke up from it and feel like i need to write about it. so here goes. i was somewhere not sure where exactly except that i must have been in a third world country. the air was dusty, the terrain was more like somewhere in africa and (we) were camped out next to the murky waters of a lake for some reason. i think kristina was next to me the whole time talking it up as she usually does while i sat there in my usual silence just listening to the conversations of which i can not remember what was said. suddenly, we were attacked by 'unknown' and all i could think of was to jump off of the small pier and hide underneath it. i was not able to see anything during the attack but it sounded like an ambush and a few of the people we were hanging around with were taken away. the next thing i know i am sitting again at the very same picnic table around dusk talking to our captors. they were just normal people who really were doing as they were told and so there was no hatred in their eyes. kristina was sitting to the left of me donned in an old lab coat of mine. the person to my right was asking all sorts of questions (a younger woman) and finally, in my dream, i said to her 'oh yea, the natalie el-jourbagy written on that lab coat is actually me, my friend was cold and that is all i could find for her to wear.' as i was sitting there and watching the countryside turn from sunset to darkness i couldn't help but find peace with it all and remember saying towards the end of the dream: you have a beautiful country here. i sipped on some fresh water and noticed my friends including kristina starting to flirt with everyone and that is when i decided to wake up. i usually do not remember my dreams. i just don't. i wonder where do they come from? how does the mind decide what to dream of and what triggers these images to appear? i'm told that our dreams are usually selfish, meaning that they are about you specifically. and to all those doctors that try and tie in your dreams to something happening in your actual life and say Ah HaH, that's it!, i say wha? you all crazy, just like me.