Your Dreams Archives

Hiker: Tamed lion, 5/6/200

I am with a large group of people and we are standing in hiking clothes at the edge of a dead volcano. There is sand and scrubby grass, rocks and a few scrubby trees down in the volcano, and we are supposed to journey to the other side and climb down the mountain. About half of us walk down into the volcano to cross over to the other side, and the rest walk around the rocky perimeter. When we reach the other side we must climb the rocks to get to the rim in order to go down on the other side of the mountain. I climb further to the left than the rest of my companions. I am not that surefooted and want to carefully pick my way up the rim. I see off to my left a very large lion .... must be a male as he has a beautiful crown of fur. He watches me curiously and slowly walks towards me. I am totally unafraid as he is not menacing. I love animals. As I reach the rim I sit down on the rocks for awhile and enjoy the scenery.

The lion circles around me from behind and quietly lies down beside me. I begin petting him and he yawns. He then licks my arm and lets me continue rubbing his neck and ruff. He begins nuzzling my leg and I am just comfortable and unafraid. I am not paying attention when I suddenly realize that he is taking my whole thigh in his mouth and as I watch in horror his teeth sink into my leg. With that I awaken. I was very shaken by this dream and have never been able to get it out of my mind. I would really appreciate hearing your interpretation.

interpretation to follow

Art: Spring hands, 3/10/00

I am looking down at my two hands which I am holding palm down, stretched out, fingers spread. Underneath the surface of the skin, there are lots of little leaves (leaves are approx. 1" high). I can see the leaves' outlines on the skin's surface. On my right hand, on the index finger, there is a little green leaf sprouting out on the left side of my fingernail. I feel freaked out and very concerned about this. I pull the leaf out, but another sprouts out in it's place. (That's it. That may or may not be the whole dream, but it's all I remember.)

interpretation to follow

csc.com: Who was that man? 12/29/99

Last night I had a dream which was different to many others I have had!! My partner has never known his father and is not particularly close to his mother. I dreamt that I was away with his mother and her parents. My partner was not there and neither were his siblings. Just me his mum, nan, and grandad. The room was quite an old room and it was quite dark and musky with beamed ceilings and little light. A man appeared and they introduced him as my partners father. I was pretty shocked as I stood and watched them all laughing and drinking together like old friends and felt somewhat sick by the fact they had been hiding him from his son! He tried to talk to me but all I could do was search his face for any evidence that he was my partners father. There was nothing familiar about him at all but I seemed to be able to look right inside him and see how lonely his heart was!! The next thing I knew I was an alcoholic and even though I was drunk and staggering around nobody paid any attention to me - they all just laughed and chatted amongst themselves!

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
father
parents
dark room
drinking

Simple interpretation:
Dreams are interesting and puzzling. Often they are not what they seem to be and your dream probably had nothing to do with your partner or his family.
The unconscious mind uses symbols to communicate with us and the source of the images is our everyday life. The room that you were in (in the dream) was old, dark, and musty. That description suggests that the room was not often used and that it hasn't been modernized. Houses in dreams generally represent the dreamer. The room that you were in probably represents a part of your own psyche. It is a place where you don't visit very often and you may not even be aware of its existence.
The characters in the dream also represent various parts of your psyche. The father figure is a very important image. It represents consciousness, the yang, and traditional spirit. It is the part of you that gives meaning to the world around you. This may be difficult to understand and it is not easy for me to explain. The most important thing to remember is that dreams attempt to connect us to all parts of ourselves. The father in your dream was loving. It is a reflection on you and you are loving. He represents the power behind your actions and deeds.

In the dream you got drunk and everyone just looked at you. Well, this is the way it is with the psyche. One part doesn't always communicate with the others. When we make mistakes and seem to be confused and lost in life (as thought we were drunk) our better nature, varying parts of our personality, and our soul, just sit there are don't do anything. They observe and wait for us to put ourselves together and to recognize them.

WBRide: Going to a wedding, 9/19/99

My husband and I were on vacation, and decided to go horseback riding. He chose a large but amiable horse, and I chose a horse that was smaller, but much more spirited. We mounted our horses, and I had a hard time getting control of mine (it bucked and ran), while he sat on his laughing and talking with the handler. When I finally got control of my horse and rode back to the corral, my husband was off his horse and looked up at me, laughed, and said "You're going to be mad at me." I knew that he was leaving to go see a football game. I hit him and bit him (neither of which have I ever done), and told him that if he left, not to bother coming back. He then got angry and said that was fine, because he didn't love me anymore. At this point, we both knew that we would be divorcing.
He left. I was still very, very angry, yelled ugly names at him, and got back on the horse. This time, there was no saddle and it was harder to ride, but the horse was more cooperative.
As soon as I realized that the horse was still under my control, I was at the house of some distant relatives and we were getting ready to go to the wedding of some other distant female relative and they were all very happy that I was there.

I ranted and raved about my husband leaving me, they sympathized and consoled me, but there was still a festive, happy mood. I was looking forward to going to the wedding but was still very angry, upset, and hurt with my husband. I went through their house to find the room in which I was supposed to get dressed. There were many people in the house, all in a happy mood, and I stopped and talked to several of them for a few minutes. For some reason, people seemed to be particularly happy that I was there. All were people that I know in passing, but am not close to.

I finally got to a bedroom where a very old man and woman were asleep, and the dress I was wearing laid out for me, a pretty dress that I liked, but was not something I would have chosen for myself. I got dressed quietly, but woke the woman up. She was nice about it, but asked me to leave.

I went to join the wedding party, and ran into my parents. I told them about my husband leaving me, they sympathized, and my father laughed and said "This letter came for you," and handed it to me. It was a form letter from the church of the cousin getting married asking me if I was a member of any church, and asking for information so that I could join their church. While there were lots of colors in the dream, the print on the letter was a particularly vivid blue, which struck me as odd.

As I was getting in the car with my parents to go to the wedding, I just knelt down on the ground and started crying uncontrollably from grief over my marriage being over. This is the first time in the dream that I was not angry with my husband. He came up, expecting me to still be angry and told me he was still angry. I told him I wasn't angry anymore, but was in mourning. He said he would come back to me and that he did still love me, but I told him I didn't want him to, and that he'd get over it too.
Then I woke up. I was left with the feeling of grief, and a feeling of confusion, and that there was something more to this dream that what was on the surface.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
horse
husband
house
wedding
church
letter (invitation)
blue
old man/old woman

Simple interpretation:
Dreams are important and often they bring up central issues or concerns. Your dream is an important one to understand because it deals with the relationship that you have with yourself more so than with the relationship that you have with your husband. Although, all things are connected and the relationship that we have with ourselves is always the springboard for all other relationships.

The dream that you described seems to have at least three separate parts to it. It presents a problem and a solution.
1. You start with two problems. A relatively wild horse and a husband that wants to do what is hurtful to you.
2. You go to a house where you are loved and all is very comfortable. Your room is prepared but you seem to have to share it with an elderly couple. Your dress is prepared and you like it. You are at the house for a wedding, everyone knows about the problem with you husband, and your parents show up.
3. You are given an invitation to join a church and at the end your husband returns. You are no longer angry with him but feel sadness because you have to let him go.

I. The first part reveals a central problem or issues. Your husband may be on his path in life which is somewhat calmer than yours. His needs may be simpler than yours and you are constantly going off in your own direction. Horses represent messages and sexuality. In life you may be more unpredictable and more anxious than your husband. But, you don't want him to go and you wish that he would follow along from time to time.
In this dream he does not care about your desire and decided to go and do what he wants. You don't like it but you still keep going and you take a ride to a familiar place with all of your relatives in it.

When looking at this part of the dream, I guess that this may be a reflection of how things are. Your marriage has not been able to alter who you fundamentally are. Because some aspects of your body and soul are not satisfied by your marriage you have been forced to look inward.

II.The house that you rode to represents you. In a dream the house is you. You went to yourself where you are basically happy and cared for. All of our life experiences take us back home -- to ourselves --to our minds and hearts. I am sure that you have a very strong and loving marriage -- but in it you need to find yourself and your own peace. Since you are a mature woman you know that happiness is not outside of yourself .
In this part of the dream the problem continues but the solution is being revealed. A marriage in a dream almost always represents a marriage of varying parts of self. The coming together of our personality, or mind, heart and soul. Thus, in the dream you are welcomed and loved and encouraged to participate in this marriage. You are embraced and guided to the wedding.

The problem of your husband leaving you still exists and you feel hurt. Everyone in the house knows this but it seems to be OK. On some level you may be disappointed in the realization that your husband can't meet all of your needs and you know that you need to stop expecting him to. You also realize that you need to deal with the central issues of contentment, wholeness and peacefulness on your own.

III. Thus, the dream shows you a solution to your internal struggles. You receive an invitation to go to church and it is written in bright blue letters. The color blue is very significant. It is the color which represents our ability to communicate and spirituality. The letter is inviting you to go on a spiritual journey and to communicate well will yourself. The dream is also inviting you to go to a wedding in which there is the coming together of you in totality (the coming together or mind body and spirit).

As we get older all of us need to deal with these type of issues. In order to feel complete and whole we need to take the journey inward. All of us need to deal with the issues of soul and immortality. It could be that you are invited to go to some type of a church to find answers. Or the church may be symbolic of you -- the temple of your body and soul which needs to be explored and be made familiar.

JBG: Running into a Cliff, 7/10/99

When I was about 10 years old I had a vivid dream that I have never forgotten.I dreamt that I was running a long a cliff being chased by a dark figure. The chase appeared to take place late at night and it was very dark, I was terrified and running frantically. The figure chased me to the end of the cliff and I jumped of the edge. I fell for what seemed like forever and the instant I hit the ground in my dream I hit the floor beside my bed in real life. I had fallen out of my bed in real life and I awoke instantly feeling scared, confused, and a little disoriented....not to mention sore....it was a wooden floor that I had landed on.

Without question, this has been the most terrifying dream I've ever had, possibly the most terrifying experience I've ever had. I have come up with a number of interpretations of it, but I would be interested to hear another opinion.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
cliff
running
stranger
falling

Simple interpretation:
Dreams are fascinating and some we remember with greater detail and feeling than real life events. You had the cliff/falling dream when you were ten years old and some of that dream's meaning has been lost. Dreams can be interpreted on many different levels. There is not quick way for me to explain your dream experience. The images in that dream can be interpreted on a very deep level and with the belief in the collective unconscious. Why would a 10 year old boy have dreams of being chased by a dark stranger and then falling endlessly? By that time in your life had you been on a cliff and why would such an image be a part of your memory?

If terrible things were going on in your life -- such as parents getting a divorce, an illness in the family, or some other traumatic event occurring, then this would be a good reason for that dream. Children experience anxiety and fear and it may be that yours manifested in this dream.

However, if no traumatic event was going on at that time then other considerations must be made. The strange dark figure in the dream can represent the negative part of you. Carl Jung called it the shadow. If you had that dream today what would you think of it? How would you explain it?

The dream may be symbolic of you running away from some negative and dark part of yourself. But, you don't do a good job and you fall endlessly. Since you still remember this dream its meaning may currently be valid on some levels. This dream may be encouraging you to face yourself and to stop running. To take good care of yourself and to work hard to stay at a level of achievement that you are on. Cliffs are generally nice dream symbols. They indicate that the dreamer has come to a certain level of growth and that he can take a moment to reflect and enjoy his life from a relatively high lookout point.

Puzzled: Sad and reoccurring dream, 6/15/99

i have had several dreams all which have been the same pretty much...it starts off as i'm driving on a regular type of road with other cars and i come across this old broken down amusement park...from the road you can see old rides, broken down rides, rides that are missing parts to it, roller coasters that are missing their tracks, water slides with no water...everything is shut down, like it's a graveyard for dead rides...then my dream skips to where i am inside the gates of this abandoned amusement park looking around almost in a panic because i am unsure of why i am here, and suddenly i see a line of people waiting to go on this one specific ride...but i know this ride is shut down like all the rest...it's a water ride...like a water slide or something to that affect...people are going on but it's not working right...there is no water and it's all decrepit and falling apart...everything in this place is scary and creepy...why do i dream of this every six months or so and what do these reoccurring dreams mean?

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
car
amusement park
water
death

Simple interpretation:
Most dreams are serious in their message. They get to something fundamental in our lives and they keep repeating themselves until we realize what they are all about. Most people have reoccurring dreams and they don't even know it. The unconscious is continuously attempting to communicate with the conscious mind and the messages are frequently repeated.

You were driving in a car and you came to an abandoned amusement park. The car ride represents a portion of your life's journey. The abandoned amusement park may also represents your life and how you are living it. In life we go up and down like on a roller coaster and we experience emotions that brings us down, just like going down a water slid.

I don't know anything about you and I could be completely wrong about this. However, I think that this dream indicates that you are currently in a depressed mood. Maybe life just doesn't seem to be that much fun for you. Maybe most things look dark and dead and as you are traveling through life you are faced with sadness.

Water in dreams represents emotions and the flow of life. Since water sustains life it can be called "the water of life." In the dream you wanted to get on the ride and experience the thrill of movement, but the ride was dead just like everything else.

I don't mean to upset you, but you need to look at things and see what you have given up on and what seems very bleak. We all go through periods of depression and this is particularly true as we are getting older. We tend to examine things and when we don't like what we see, or when life just seems to get to difficult, we get depressed. This dream may be an encouragement for you to get in touch with your emotions and to realize you own state of mind -- and then to move on. Dreams are great and they encourage us to think and feel. At times our feelings are not joyful -- but so what! We feel good and we feel bad and it is all a part of life.

May: Unforgettable Dreams, 4/15/99

Dream #1: I come back from the gym with my friends. We are exhausted and we fall onto a bed. I'm in the middle. I get up and go over to some shelves and start to eat a flower. The flower has worms in it. I get up to spit out the worms and when I come back there's this kid laying in my spot. I get angry that he's there. The dream gets a little fuzzy here but I know that I walked down the hall to lay down somewhere else. All of a sudden I have worms in my mouth again. I wake up and I'm sitting up in my bed.

Dream # 2: This dream was so life like I thought it was really happening. In the dream I wake up in my bed and I'm not alone. There's someone laying on top of me. He's got his legs on top of me and his arms around me. My head is tilted to the left and his mouth is around mine. I can feel his saliva dripping into my mouth. I try to break away but he's getting tighter and tighter on my mouth (the more I struggle). I can feel his teeth digging into my lip until I can taste the blood. I try to grab his hair, but he doesn't have any. He has a bone sticking out like a pterodactyl's head does. I'm so scared that I can't even scream. Finally I get the courage and I start to yell. I woke up yelling and my arms were around the air. I was in the exact same position on my bed that I had been in my dream and my heart was racing. It was like when I screamed, the thing just disappeared.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
worms
flower
stranger
rape
violence
fear
blood

Simple interpretation:
I hope that your dreams have improved and that you have not experienced further nightmares. Dreams often reflect our daily lives. They bring up -- in very bazaar ways -- issues and concerns, or emotionally charged materials that effect the quality of our day to day experiences.
In the first dream you were laying down with your friends and ate a wormy flower. In the second dream you were being raped or tortured by a very strange creature (was definitely not a normal man).
These dreams indicate that you are filled with anxiety and fear which is probably self inflicted. Flowers are symbolic of innocence, beauty and at times our spirituality and our souls. You were eating yours and it had worms in it. This suggests that you may be less than careful with yourself, your feelings and your actions.

The second dream was more violent which suggests that you may be experiencing great pressure and may feel a lack of control in regard to a specific area of your life. Since the man in the dream was a stranger we can say that that he represented your own unconscious energy. On some levels you may be hurting and violating yourself. The unconscious is scaring you into awareness and possibly warning you to be more careful with your physical, emotional and psychological health.

If you are not doing anything obviously destructive you may need to take a look inside of yourself. Think about how you are feeling and try to identify what would make you a happier person. At times wrong decisions create anxiety, fear, self-negation and self-hatred and these negative feelings show up in our dreams. Although your dreams were disturbing they may be a very good indication to you that the time has come for you to be more gentle and much kinder to yourself.

BB: Let us Dance and Talk, 4/5/99

A dear and old friend of mine took me to his mother's home to visit her. We went into the kitchen -- which was a very large room. The room was cheerful and everyone was having a good time. I recognized his mother, sister and stepfather, except that they looked different -- more "primitive". They reminded me of some of the pictures you see of Haitians and some African tribes people -- gaunt looking, not malnourished, but gaunt with wide eyes and mouths partially open. Two of the children were physically handicapped, but intelligent. His sister and I chatted -- trivialities, nothing of significance. Ronald was nowhere to be seen.

A procession of costumed people started coming into the room. They were dressed in vibrant colors, gorgeous blues, violets, yellows and oranges. Some of the people appeared to be extremely tall because of the slender teepee shaped coverings they wore which completely covered their faces. Other people, I remember mostly women, accompanied those with the full coverings. I was curious as to who they were but in no way alarmed. All the other people in the room seemed to disappear as these people slowly and deliberately encircled me, I was aware of some low chanting type sounds. As they encircled me, it seemed the area in which I was enclosed became smaller.
One of the women I had particularly noticed during the initial procession wore, I think, a beautiful shade of pink and she said to me something like this, "You remember me as Yulnee of Oondolay Beach." She repeated this statement a number of times during the course of the dream. At some point, I was covered with a beautiful, silky, transparent cloth in kind of a peach color. There was chanting (I thought some kind of prayers, I also thought these are African people of the old Voodoo religion -- not the Hollywood style voodoo, but the religion as still practiced by many). I wasn't afraid but, during the course of everything I kept saying, "I want nothing not of Jesus" and I kept repeating this over and over again while I tried to figure out what they were saying.

While this was going on there were symbols of all type floating above the transparent clothe. I could see them, but they made no sense to me. Some looked like square off lower case "h"s, others looked like half of a hair comb, some looked like sea shells and others just kind of squiggly lines. At some point I heard these words -- not said by "Yulnee" but one of the people in the teepee like costume -- "you' ll be paralyzed for (or in) six months". It was only said once. I had no sense of fear, somehow I didn't believe they meant any harm. Yet, increasingly as the dream went on I found it harder and harder to breathe -- my breathing seemed to be raspy and coming in short bursts, my heart was pounding. I was also aware that I couldn't move my limbs. I wasn't in deep sleep because I was aware that I needed to go to the bathroom. I didn't want to wake up, even though I had to go to the bathroom and was a bit concerned about the breathing problem, because I wanted to hear what they seemed to need to tell me, and because I knew that all too often in my life I have backed away from situations in which I was afraid, whether of failure in an endeavor or fearful that my actions would not be approved by whoever. I didn't want to run away. But nature got the best of me and I remember beginning to consciously try to move first my arms then my legs and I started really waking up.

Simple interpretation:
Most dreams are a reflection of some part of our daily lives, but once in a while we have special dream that goes beyond our daily ups and downs.
Your dream was mystical and special. There are several different possibilities in regard to the strange people dancing and chanting around you. We can say that they are hidden parts of you and belong to your unconscious. They are unconscious parts of you trying to make themselves heard and seen. We can say that they represent your ancestors. They are those people from which you came from and they came into your dream to tell you something, to pray with you and for you, and to offer you some information. We could also say that the people are your guides and your protectors from the other side.

All of these things could be said about the people in your dream. What you will ultimately consider them to be is up to you and your belief system.
What they are and where they came from may be less important than the symbolism and the messages that they bring.

The people were dressed in bright colors and were dancing and chanting in a circle around you. The circle is very symbolic and important. It represents your sense of wholeness and completeness. Carl Jung called the circular image in a dream a mandala and ultimately it became the most important symbol. We all need and want to feel a sense of wholeness and completeness. We have a desire to get to the center, to the core, of what and who we are. Those people in the dream were possibly pointing out to you that your time of feeling this completeness is coming near. All of those figures may have been brought together in your dream for the purpose of wholeness.

The chanting and the colors are always good symbols. Sounds in dreams are important and the voice and the words that you heard are also important. I am not sure what they mean but I think that their message is good. The dream sounds like a culminating experience and you should take it as such.

The dream may leave you feeling somewhat spooky or strange and this is because of the mystery behind the dream. Was your unconscious telling you a very specific message? Dreams are here to enlighten us and to convey the deepest and most serious message. This particular dream is very beautiful and appears to express feelings of celebration and joy.

The idea about your being paralyzed -- what do you think that this means? Whenever I had messages in my dreams about poor health, or some other hardship, I was always able to trace it back to something in my life that was hurting or hurtful to me. On some levels we know everything that is going to happen to us. There are no surprises and nothing happens without our permission. We may not be aware of it all but on the unconscious, or the soul level, all is known by all of us.

Pam: Potato Pancakes, 2/20/99

For several nights I have had basically the same dream where I am mixing ingredients and trying to make potato pancakes. The mixture never looks exactly the way I think that it should and I keep trying to make the perfect pancake. It seemed to me as though the dream went on forever. I felt as though I had the same dream for the entire night.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
food
cooking
circle

Simple interpretation:
This is a very simple but important dream. Much value can be obtained from understanding it. This dreamer has recently started going to therapy. She is making effort to see things clearly and to "make" a better and more perfect Pam. When people first start going to therapy they will frequently have very important and telling dreams. Since most people don't know how to interpret their dreams -- valuable messages are lost. Fortunately, the unconscious continues to send messages until the conscious mind gets involved.
This woman wants to make the perfect potato pancake. The pancake is round. The round or circular shape is an important symbol. It represents the psychic center of personality, wholeness and completeness. Carl Jung called this circular image a mandala. This dream is symbolic of the woman's efforts to mold herself into the person that she desires to be. To establish in herself feelings of wholeness and completeness. This dream is simple and beautiful. The dreamer who's name begins with the letter P is attempting to make the Perfect Potato Pancakes. The dreams consistency and duration are indicative of this woman's desire to grow and to obtain her emotional and psychological goals.

LovelyRose: Mom is in the Window, 1/25/99

In my dream I was in the kitchen washing dishes when my mother's face appeared in the window before me. My mom died several years ago. I saw her face clearly and fully as it stared at me with an emotionless expression. My body seemed frozen and paralyzed with fear.
I reached under the sink to take the garbage bag out. I tied the bag and picked up the garbage can. Holding it out in front of me I took stutter-steps backwards, feeling petrified with fear inside of me. I took 4 steps backwards and was in the TV room and was looking back to my left for my husband who always sits in the recliner. However, he was not there and in his place sat my father (he is still alive).
I looked at him and stuttered. It sounded to me like I said "ma ma ma ma ma mmm ama ma". He looked into my eyes with a confirming look of "I know" but did not get up. I turned to go back into the kitchen -- moving as though my legs were made out of led. When I got close to the window I put the garbage can (having never dropped it) out in front of me. I banged it on the window at my mother's face, which had now moved to the bottom center of the window. It appeared clearer in definition and color than ever before.
Banging on the window saying "go away, go away". Totally scared to death, her face emotionless, the fear in me so real I woke up sweating and frightened and shaking and trembling. Now wide awake and jumping up out of bed to wipe the sweat from my neck and get some water. I pondered on why I would do that to my mother who died four and a half hears ago and whom I loved so much. That dream upset me and lingered in my mind for weeks later, trying to make some sense out of it.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
mother
deceased relatives
garbage
window
house
father

Simple interpretation:
The dreamer and I are good friends and I know about her feelings toward her mother, as well as her relationships with both of her parents. This dream was very disturbing and frightening. On the conscious level the dreamer was shocked to have been so fearful and violent toward her mother. When she saw her mom's face in the window she wanted it to go away. She was afraid, looked for help from her father but did not get it. She ultimately had to try and force her mother to go away by banging on the window with the garbage.
This dream is about the dreamers feelings toward her mother and herself. The house is symbolic of the dreamer and in that house was her father. Her mom was on the outside. She is deceased, thus the dreamer has placed her "out there". Emotionally, the dreamer has detached from her mom on the conscious level. Her death was very painful and the dreamer needed to distance herself from the pain. In this dream the unconscious mind makes attempts to bring into focus emotional issues that need to be addressed.
The dreamer may be keeping her mother out with the "garbage" or psychological trash which has accumulated over time. In order for the dreamer to make peace with her mother she must get rid of her psychological and emotional trash. Her father may be of no assistance and he may sit and watch her pain and her discomfort, just like he did in the dream.

LA.fun: Gun and Gagging, 1/22/99

I've had a recurring dream for years and just recently had a new twist to it. The environment I'm in varies and seems insignificant. over the years. I've been alone and with others during the dream. The key thing that always happens to me is that I get gum stuck in my mouth. As I try to spit it out, the gum grows into a large wad and gets stuck all over my teeth. I try to use my tongue to push it out, but it continues to get stuck and grows larger. I then try to use my fingers to pull it out, and the gum continuously gets pulled out of my mouth like a magician pulling scarves out his/her sleeve.

The twist I've had over the pat two times I've dreamt this is that the gum turns into the skin of the tongue. I pull and I feel slight pain. The gum is always pink or white and I'm not sure what that means or if it has any significance. When I am in public during the dream, I do remember always turning away and trying to get the gum out in a polite way, only to slightly panic when it becomes a problem. I have often awaken with my mouth salivating/drooling. I sometimes get the feeling that I actually move my tongue to push the "gum" out physically, in my sleep, while dreaming, although have no proof I've really done that.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
chewing gum
mouth
choking

Simple interpretation:
I like this dream because it is interesting and "modern" in its symbolism. I received several dreams just like this one and all of the dreamers seemed to have frustration in their lives.
In order to understand any dream the dreamer needs to try to connect it to her daily life. The gum in the dream could represent lessons that you need to "chew" on and understand. Maybe there is something that you just don't want to learn -- a lesson that continuously keeps coming up for you. Instead of chewing it, mulling it over or internalizing it, you simply want to get rid of it. The more you try to get rid of it the bigger its importance to your life becomes.

Another area of meaning could be that the gum represents words or feelings you don't seem to be able to adequately express. Your current way of expressing yourself may be inadequate. Ask yourself if you are repetitive and childish in your requests and personal communications.

aol.com: A Spiritual Dream, 11/13/98

I was somewhere and my mom asked me if I had been to a certain waterfall. I said I thought so and next thing you know we were at a waterfall. There was a big tunnel coming out of a wall on one side and some elephants came out of it. My mom said no way, there can't be elephants here and seemed a little scared. I said obviously there were and we should stay out of their way. The elephants went into another tunnel and charged through it like a train. I decided I needed to cross the first tunnel and go to the other side.
At first I was concerned more elephants would come out and crush me. My mom said "no don't do it", but I yelled back something like I have to. At the entrance of the tunnel it said something like: when you cross through you will remember all your sins or all your children's sins. I don't remember which. I realized the person going through would be protected from the elephants. I traveled through and it was pleasant enough. On the other side there was a lagoon and I dove in. I felt spiritually cleansed. There were some people there and they offered me food. That was the end of the dream.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
elephants
tunnel
waterfall
water
mother

The dreamers free associations to some of the symbols and content in the dream:
My initial impression of the elephants was that they had to do with remembering sins. Somehow I think the dream had to do with remembering past wrongs and somehow being rid of them or cleansed of them.
The tunnel was the cleansing process. But, I had to remember them (my wrong doings or sins) to be cleansed of them. By remembering perhaps I mean acknowledging, of taking ownership of them. When I went into the tunnel I thought this would be painful., but it was not. The tunnel somehow let me remember them and let them go at the same time.
The elephants were very powerful figures, but the power was contained and I was safe. I went and visited a waterfall over the summer, but that was some months ago. The key seems to be about a safe passage and maybe this dream reflects a certain amount of peace with my parents.

Simple interpretation:
As soon as I read this dream I knew that the dreamer had a wonderful, delightful and refreshing experience. This dreamer is a hard worker. He keeps up with his dreams and his life, and this particular dream was a reward. The dreamer went though a waterfall which was symbolic of a cleansing. The elephants came out of the tunnel, but did not hurt him and he was not afraid of them. The elephants most likely represented all of his old baggage. Those large things that continuously interfered with his happiness and his achievements.
The dreamer traveled though a tunnel into a world of peace. He was rewarded by more cleansing and by a deep feeling of contentment. In this world -- I call it his spiritual world -- all was well. He was free of daily burdens and that is something that is very difficult for any of us to accomplish --even momentarily. The deep feeling of freedom is rare, when we experience it in our drams it is a real gift.
We could take a more psychological explanation for this dream, but Why?

(entered 10/25/98)
sympatico.ca: Snow and the Past, 10/7/98

i was vacationing in a snowy place. my friends had left without me...it was getting dark and i knew i shouldn't travel in the dark as the roads would be icy. i got caught in a snow bank and when i got out i was at a house i knew belonged to my grandparents (actually a different house then i remember) i was not cold or panicked going through the snow.. i met my grandfather, who took me on a tour through the house..
everything from my childhood was there, pictures, furniture especially toys...i was focused on one small toy truck and wanted to have it...my grandmother instead gave me a small leather case containing girls things, i.e. a hairbrush, hairbrett and some change....i pulled up a carpet and underneath was a doodle my brother had carved into the floor; he appeared laughing and smiling... that seemed to convince me that it was indeed in my grandparents house...my grandparents asked if i wanted to take anything with me. i asked for the truck and did not get an answer....i left feeling odd (not sure if all was real) and out of place. i could hear the snow crunching at me feet.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
snow
siblings
people
house
pictures

The dreamers free associations to some of the symbols and content in the dream:
when i woke up, i felt uneasy and disoriented...my grandparents are both dead and i haven't seen that brother in years....often writing things down helps to clear ones mind.

Simple interpretation:
Sometimes dreams bring up old and unresolved issues. This dreamer did not connect any part of the dream to her current experiences. However, I don't believe that this is entirely true. Although, this dream may be about old issues, it has come up at the current time do to things that are going on in the dreamers mind presently. Maybe old issues and current issues are not all that different?
The grandparents house may be representative of the dreamers emotional and psychological identity. She got to this old dwelling place, inside of her own psyche, by going through snow. The snow is very symbolic because it represents emotions and feelings that are often ignored. Since the snow in the dream is not unpleasant, it could also represent a more innocent time, but an emotionally "frozen" time in the dreamers life.
The dreamer needs to take this opportunity to discover things about herself that she may not have addressed previously. A closer look at the earlier relationships with her grandparents and brother may be in order. So much of who we are is established very early in our lives. Our feelings about ourselves and others, as well as the most profound self identity, may come to mind from a time that we usually do not remember. This is one of the reasons why it is so important to pay attention to those things that come up in our dreams. Freud made the observation that some dreams are based on memory. This is true, but I don't think that the memory dream is a random dream. We bring up an experience from the past because it is valuable and meaningful to us in the present.

Silvana Amar's Book: The Bedside Dream Dictionary is now published by Skyhorse Publishing and is available on Amazon throughout the world (amazon.com, amazon.ca, amazon.co.uk, etc.).

JC@.com: Being Skinned, 10/5/98

The setting was in a college building, where classes are held. I was there and there was a man that told everyone that he was going to skin me alive in front of all of them. He just came into the class and there were no other women in that class. All of the guys were just freaked out, but I had the feeling that none of them would fight for me -- that they would just watch in horror. I somehow got away and ran into a long corridor until I entered another classroom. The same man was in there-- and he told that class the same thing. I was so afraid and all I could think about was how bad it would hurt, that it would take so long and nobody would help me. It is like the whole building was deserted except there were people in the classrooms I was in.
The hallway was dark, just a couple lights up high. The halls were long. When I went into the second classroom and he was there, I had the same feelings -- that nobody was going to save me -- that they would just watch because they were all so horrified and just shocked. I remember looking around the room for someone to look at me -- so I could see if I could tell from their eyes that they might help me -- but I didn't recognize anyone and nobody would make eye contact with me. Then I woke up and I was having an anxiety attack -- my heart was pounding and my chest was really heavy.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
school
strangers
fear
running
skin

The dreamers free associations to some of the symbols and content in the dream:
My husband and I were separated before and now I am feeling that I want a divorce....I feel I wouldn't ever be happy with him and that he could find someone else that would really love and appreciate him. My interpretation of my dream would be that I feel trapped and that by staying with him I an suffering slowly and feel there is no way out.

Simple interpretation:
Dreams are most frequently triggered by the dreamers current problems or painful experiences. This dreamer has a most personal and painful issue to resolve. Should she stay with her husband or should she go and discover a new happiness for herself.
The setting for the dream is a college, which is symbolic of the "school of life". As she is growing and developing she has a need to learn and to change. As new information is being acquired and realized, her old life, or way of being, is no longer acceptable. The man in her dream wanted to "skin her alive". This is a very powerful symbolism and it represents her need to change her most basic, but external, identity. The skin is the outside covering, it provides protection and warmth, and for the most part determins what we look like. In the dream she needs to shed this "skin" and venture out without the stability, warmth and protection of her marital life and home. This transition is a learning experience and a necessary move in this persons life. However, it is also a very painful predicament. Not only is her husband going to experience pain of rejection anda deep unsettling of his life, but so is the dreamer.
The dream is a frightening experience. The "man" in her dream wants to skin her alive and he is pursuing her. All the other people in her dream are strangers and they are unwilling to help her. She realized that "nobody was going to save me". This dream has a profound message for the dreamer. Her urgency to change is pursuing her. It is going to take over her and she will need to go through a painful change. None will be able to save her, because ultimately none can. Our salvation always lies in our own hands. All transitions are generally painful and we need to call on our own abilities and talents. In this dream the dreamer experiences anxiety and fear. However, she remembers it and this entire issues becomes a part of her conscious mind. By remembering this dream the dreamer gains awareness which will help her to deal with her fears and anxieties in a stronger and more productive manner.

worldnet.com: Basement, 9/13/98

This dream I'm having is actually a compilation of several.
It usually begins in the house I grew up in as a child.
I find myself all alone, no one is home. When I realize I am alone I become gripped with fear. I begin to turn on lights only to find all the lights are burned out. I find myself totally frustrated that every light I try to turn on is burned out. With my frustration also comes a sense of fear that I am not alone. Something else is in the house and it is somehow responsible for keeping me from turning on the lights.
In past dreams, I would simply wake myself up as the fear grew deeper but one night I was in the middle of this dream and I told myself it was only a dream and that I'd see it thru because I wanted to know what the "something" was. I found myself at the hallway entrance to the basement frantically turning on the lights that would dim or burn out as soon as they were turned on. I knew the "something" was down there but as frightened as I was, I had to confront it. I threw open the door and turned on the stairwell light. Just as I did so, my cat ran down the stairs and I feared whatever it was would harm the cat. But I was also thinking, the cat doesn't seem to be afraid. Why should I? At that moment the "something" passed by the bottom of the stairwell into the light and out the back entrance of the basement. I could see from the waist down it was a person wearing the same pair of pants and shoes that I owned and I realized it was me.
When I awoke I had this feeling of sorrow and love for what I had experienced. Now, I can't seem to replicate the dream in order to continue it.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
house
baseman
cat
light
stairs
fear

Simple interpretation:
This is a beautiful dream which illustrates several very important points. It is a very personal dream and the dreamer must contemplate and determine its specific and very valuable meaning. The dream is about self-discovery and the importance of getting to know the deeper side of oneself. In one of the dreams the dreamer had a "lucid" experience. He decided to pursue the story regardless of the fear, and to discover the object of his fear.
The basement represents our foundation, our unconscious, or dwelling place away from the "conscious" experience. In there we find ourselves and it is not something to fear, but rather something to embrace.

PSJC: Car ride, 7/10/98

This morning I had a very interesting and very revealing dream. The part that I remember most clearly was the very end of the dream. I was in a very messy room with several other people. I remember knowing them in the dream, but can't remember who they were right now. The room had several unmade beds and there seemed to be alot of extra sheets and pillows. There was a younger woman (in her late teens of early twenties) on one of the beds. The thought occurred to me, and I knew that she was my boyfriends other girlfriend (in real life he does not have another girlfriend). In the dream she was his the way that I am his -- except that they didn't seem to have a sexual relationship-- but emotionally she was the same to him as I am. I told him that I wanted to talk about this situation, he seemed annoyed, as though he didn't see anything wrong with this arrangement and he could not understand my objections or my need to "talk about it".

The next thing I remember is that all three of us were in a car and I was driving. My boyfriend was sitting next to me and the girl, who's name began with the letter M, was in the back seat. The car ride was terrible. I was stressed, angry and annoyed. All kinds of garbage was flying into the car and I had to violently keep throwing it out. At one point a large paper bag flew into the car and blocked my vision. I hurried to throw it out and I prevented the car from hitting a road divider by sticking my foot out the window and pushing the car in the general direction of the road. The road was curvy and there was alot of traffic. It reminded me of a highway, or a very large boulevard, in the middle of a busy and unclean city. I was uncomfortable in the driver's seat because my boyfriend was leaning so far to my side that I did not have enough room to move. He was so close that one would think that he was going to take charge. He never did that, and I didn't think that it was his intention, but he simply prevented me from driving safely and well. I remember thinking how this was the ride from hell, and at one point we almost crashed into two oncoming cars.

The last thing that I remember about the dream was the conversation that I had with the girl in the back seat. We were both agreeing that it was impossible for him to keep two girlfriends. That we both needed to be married and that we did not believe in bigamy. Also, that he was a poor man and that he could not afford to have two wives. The girl seemed detached from the situation, she did not seem to care very much for him and seemed unaffected by the nightmarish car ride. One of the last things that she said was that she was born in 1978, and that made her twenty years old. I thought how strange and inappropriate it was for my boyfriend to be emotionally involved with this girl and how she really didn't care very much for him at all.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
car
road
journey
garbage
people
pillows
beds

The dreamers free associations to some of the symbols and content in the dream:
My boyfriend and I are an older couple. We have been together for years and currently we are considering marriage. I have been ambivalent and worried about the entire thing. I think that he is very much set in his ways and that it would be very difficult for him to change and begin a new life. It would also be very difficult for me to change. I think that this dream represents the current situation in our relationship. I may be in charge on some level, and may be in the drivers seat. However, I think that he "lets me" be in the drivers seat because of his own insecurities. He is not willing to give up control, so he keeps getting in the way of my "driving". The young woman may represent some of the things form his past that he has not been able to let go of and that keep getting in the way of our - and particularly his - progress as a human being. I don't know what the girls name represents -- not sure about this or the year 1978. These two thing must be symbolic, but I don't know what their symbolism is.
This dream left me feeling tired and frustrated and sad. I don't want to think about it to the extent of evaluating each symbol. It may be just more than I can take today.
This dream and so many others have made me realize how important it is to write down our dreams and to try to understand them!!

Simple interpretation:
This dreamer did an excellent job of interpreting and connecting her dream to her daily life. She does not need any help from me, but she simply needs to continue thinking about some of the other details in the dream. This dream is an excellent illustration of how some dreams are very clear in their meaning, and how this knowledge can be very useful to our understanding of ourselves and our problems. If the dreamer was unwilling to admit to herself the type of emotional confusion and difficulties that she was having, she would not have been able to interpret this very valuable dream. Her interpretation is an wonderful example of how you are your own best dream interpreter!! Thanks PS for sending us your dream.

.COM: Disaster at Work, 6/5/98

I work in a high rise building and that is where the dream took place. I was looking out our window (a couple of strangers were in the office at the time) when I saw a space shuttle crash into an airplane right next to our building. A large part of one of the aircraft's spun off and hit our window without breaking it. I breathed a sigh of relief thinking I was safe. All of the sudden our building began to rock in circles as a result of the impact. The circles got wider and bigger with each rotation. Ultimately the building began to fall. I looked down to see where I was going to hit and there was a vast lake below (there is only a small pond by our real building). On the way down I was saying all of the prayers I wanted to say. We crashed... The next thing I knew a rescue team unlocked our windows and got us out of the building. I returned to where our building was to see if I could pick up anything or find anybody in our company. The only thing I found was my car in the garage. I kept wondering if I would be able to get back to work without my office or computer. I was wondering If anybody else would work as well. I was walking around quite a while lost without getting any answers.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
window
strangers
airplane
water
car

The dreamers free associations to some of the symbols and content in the dream:
The dream was meaningful to me as I have some significant decisions to make regarding my career. I have been sitting on this decision for over a year now and I would like to commit. The decision is only up to me there are no real excuses for the delay.

Simple interpretation:
This dreamer's concerns about work related issues came to play in his dream. Something from a distance crashed and caused his building to fall to the ground and into a lake. He was looking out of the window and observing the entire event. When the building crashed into the water, nobody got hurt. The dreamer was able to escape and find his car.
Looking through the window symbolizes his ability to see and comprehend what is going on around him. Whatever is influencing his thoughts and ideas about his career is powerful, and it is capable of changing his current location and position. The building falling into the water suggests that this change is emotional and that it may be difficult on some levels. The final massage of the dream appears to be one of reassurance. Regardless of the initial impact and confusion, the dreamer will be a able to continue on his life journey -- intact, which is indicated by the fact that he found his car with relative ease.

ADMR: Swimming with Tiger, 5/15/98

I am in a group but the focus is on me and I am being chased by some lions. I head toward the ocean or lake because lions are afraid of water. I go into the water onto a boat but the lions change into tigers or I realize they are tigers and they continue to follow. I then fall into the water, I'm not sure why. I realize that if I try to get onto the boat again the tigers will get me so I don't try. It seems the tigers don't notice me at first. I then decide that after they get the people on the boat they will come after me, so I decide to try to save the people on the boat by getting the tiger, now there is just one, to come after me.
When the tiger does this I dive under the water and the tiger follows. I think that if I swim deep enough the tiger will follow me and by the time he catches me it won't have enough time to reach the surface and it will drown and the others will be saved. The thoughts go by quickly but I have a very intense sensation of me swimming deeper and deeper into the depth. As I reach a very deep point the tiger catches up with me and bites my skull. It doesn't bite deeply and I'm not sure if its playing with me or marking me as its territory. Then I wake up.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
tiger
swimming
boat
water

The dreamers free associations to some of the symbols and content in the dream:
At the time I had this dream I was under some stress and I felt that perhaps I wasn't dealing with opposition in my life very well. This sense of opposition comes from a deep rooted feeling that others may take advantage of my weaknesses. These weaknesses stem from issues in my past and me not always dealing well with my parents.

Simple interpretation
The dreamer is attempting to get away from the inevitable. He does not want to directly deal with the danger and makes all attempts to get away from it. However, when he realizes that the large cat was going to harm others, he sacrifices himself and attempts to save them. The only way to outsmart the cat is to go far under the water. The deep dive will most likely destroy him as well as the tiger. When the tiger finally catches up to him, it does not appear to want to destroy him. He is unsure if the animal wants to play, tease or kill.
The interpretation of this dream is very personal, as is true with all dreams. Dreams are created by the mind of the dreamer, and the associations in the dream are a result of our experiences, emotions and memory.
Interestingly enough, the tiger represent the dreamer's mother. The relationship between a mother and a child (in a typical situation) is the most psychologically significant relationship. It is a precious relationship which makes life long impressions, and an impact on an individual. Very rarely is a mother all bad or all good, but she is always attached to powerful emotions. This dreamer decides to rescue others by diving into the water. The water is the symbol of our emotions and our unconscious. Through our correspondence, this dreamer has demonstrated a significant amount of self-awareness and he has taken the journey inward. The source of all of our healing and happiness can only be found deep inside ourselves. Whether we believe in the soul or the mind, or both....the most difficult journey is the journey into ourselves, and when we go there we will inevitably find our mother! This is true in our dream life, as well as in our fully awakened state.

Dida: Cliff and Snakes, 5/6/98

Last night I dreamt I was in the desert. The colors were all desert-related..light browns, white, yellows. It was daytime, noon I think, judging from the brightness. I was facing the base of a rough,
sandstone cliff. At the base of the cliff, there were rocks and boulders and many snakes, small, medium, and large snakes (the large ones were as tall as people and about the same girth). The large snakes were ferocious-looking, with fangs, lighter in color than the smaller snakes. All the snakes were upright, but not necessarily about to strike. I was worried during and after the dream. Then I woke up.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
snakes
cliff
desert
rocks

Simple interpretation
The desert could represent the internal or external landscape of the dreamer. The cliff represents a goal or a plateau which is higher in "altitude" than the dreamer's current vantage point. The rocks may represent potential and the constant reliable parts of life. The snakes may represent temptation, unconscious fears, physical obstacles and possible enemies. The ability to move forward exists, but the dreamer must identify and overcome obstacles which slow progress and bring fear into consciousness.

RGfromMT: Climbing and Fighting, 4/26/98

I'm leading a group of friends on a spiritual quest up a steep, heavily timbered mountain. Every so often I sense ancient, sacred places and we all pray and continue up the mountain and it is hard going. At the summit, as we are worshipping in the final and most sacred place, we are attacked by an army of angry, inimical strangers and we have to violently defend ourselves with sticks and rocks and spears. The battle rages fiercely for a long time and the rocky ground is littered with bodies but my group of worshipers, under my leadership, win the conflict. When the war ends, all the bodies rise again alive and everyone hugs and shakes hands and go off together to have a party.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
climbing
mountain
fighting
killing
anger

Simple interpretation
This dream can be interpreted on several different levels. The mountain may represent the challenge of life and the struggles that we need to overcome in order to successfully reach our goals. The "battles" that we fight in life become irrelevant in retrospect, and the only reality that counts is our present state of being. This dreamer is in a "good place", thus he has made peace with his past anger and with his old enemies (both internal and external). He can love all parts of his human experience because he has achieved material and psychological comfort in life. This dream could also be interpreted on a spiritual level. However, spirituality is very personal and the interpretations of such nature are specific to the dreamer.

Barbro Nygren, Malmoe, Sweden: The Lizard, 4/21/98

A lizard that sat on my elbow, the tail lay on the forearm toward my hand, the head immediately above the elbow. I knew that I would die if the lizard should be taken off. The lizard had a skin that was brown-black and lustrous.

Left arm: are the supporting actives. The lizard are our fundamental reactions from spinal cord and basal brain, as a struggle or escape, reproduction, attraction, repulsive, sexual instinct, needs of food and pain threshold. This includes ability to alteration and the instinct to survive - very powerful and ancient processes. Our relationship to the reptile in our dreams expresses our conjunction with such powers within us and how we deal with impulses from the old portion of the brain.
Lizard: Generally a lizard is almost as a snake, disregard from that it lacks the poisonous aspect; consciousness about unconscious or instinctive instinct, functions and processes; the lizard is also a moon animal.

Barbro Nygren, Malmoe, Sweden: The Fountain, 4/3/98

I sat in front of a desk and behind it sat a man, he was an scientist.He asked me if the light was organic or tertiary. I said organic after much thinking. Then he let me out to another time. The streets was paving in pattern, and in one of the houses lived a man that worshipped the sun. Inside the city there was a big well and in middle of the well, a fountain. People threw in things or themselves into the water so occasionally the water was just mud. A man climbed up from the well and he wear out the right eye since it was rotten. Then he began to discuss his experiences.

Mud- the fundamental, ancient, sensual, muddy ground for the life and our relationship to feelings that receives us to feel that we sitting firm, the past experiences as can hold us back but that means a huge ability to maturity, the body and its minerals healing ability.
Eye- how we view the world and ourselves. The loss of eyesight on right eye; to not see what happens in the external world.
Fountain- process of life, consciousness stream towards attention,
delight to the collective life.

Courtney, Texas: Blue, ghosts and horseback riding, 4/4/98

As for my dreams, I have them every night. The one I had last night involved me driving out west of Houston toward Austin, where the bluebonnets and other wildflowers cause the fields to absolutely explode with color around this time of year.
I remember wind blowing my hair all around as I sped down the freeway, and I was noticing how large and BLUE BLUE BLUE the flowers were. I was thinking, "they're always bigger and brighter as you get further out west." Suddenly I found myself riding a large dapple-gray horse. The sun was setting, and the sky was vibrantly orange and pink. The wind started getting cool, and I could feel the air on my bare arms and on my face. We stopped at a farm, where an older couple lived, and they gave water to my horse and led me to a cozy room in the back of their house. I sat in this room for a while, and then was visited by several ghosts. I was aware that they were deceased, but they appeared very lifelike. They were happy, pleasant, and very nice to talk to. One of them was a woman who recently came to talk to us in my psychology course.

They explained to me that death wasn't as bad as we think it will be, that it's actually a move-on to another level. They gave me all kinds of advice, and seemed to genuinely care about me. We laughed and talked, and I asked them if they watched TV, they said that they had their own station, "D-TV", but that people couldn't see it. (I'm actually laughing as I write this. The most amazing thing was the total sense of calm and relaxation I felt throughout this dream, normally I'm uncomfortable about death and what lies beyond it, and I try not to think of it very often.)

The strangest thing about these dreams, Silvana, is that they're so VIVID! It's like watching a totally engrossing film, reading a good book, or actually living it sometimes.

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
driving or journey
blue
horse
ghosts
flowers

This dream appears to have significant spiritual tones. Courtney was pleased by this dream, even though she was talking to the deceased. She felt as though she was learning something important, and that the ghosts in her dream were relaying valuable information to her. The blue flowers and the horse would support the idea that the dream was essentially spiritual.

Calin: Impaled on a cross -- 3/30/98

I had this dream about something that seems really odd to me. I was on top of this cliff, I don't know why. Suddenly I look down over the edge and it is higher than it was five minutes before. I have a parachute on and I decide to jump. So I jump and fall for over 10 thousand feet, I know because I have an altimeter. And then I don't. I have no chute, but I still have thousands of feet to fall. I watch the ground rush up to me, it is a small town.

There is a church in the middle with a really tall steeple and what appears to be a long tall lightning rod type of structure,only it isn't. It is a tall, thin iron cross, one that you would see in older churches. Suddenly as I am watching from a full view from my own eyes, I watch the cross point go through my body, effectively impaling me from my navel through the base of my skull. And then I die, and am looking at my dead body from the ground level. It is a sickening sight of my impaled body in top of a church steeple cross. As I said I have physically lost all life. Incidentally, this is all in color, but a very dull almost black and gray type of color. And then I wake up. I feel disoriented, and lost. Not physically, but just lost, mentally, like I missed out on something huge, but it is too late. I am a Christian, but I feel no real need to go to church, I feel that worship on my own is fine. I read everything, Daoist, Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, ancient polytheistic stuff,and I realize that no religion is really any different from another.

Peter: Beat up car in the driveway -- 3/26/98

I had this dream 2 nights ago. It was about 12:00 a.m. and I was with my company Envirosafe. I had parked my Cadillac in a dark driveway. Time passed by and at about 1:00 my co-workers and I exited the building we were in and I saw that my car was just totaled; every thing was stripped and all that was left was the body and the rims. In a different perspective in my dream I was sitting on top of a brick wall to see if I could see who had done this. In the distant background I could see two figures one white and the other person I couldn't really make out because they were to far in the distant. I could hear the white person say..."He'll be really suprised what happened and he(I guess he was talking about me) deserves it. After that I woke up.

FL: Aquarium with Dead Fish -- 3/10/98

I was standing next a 30-40 gallon aquarium with a medium size flat silverfish, which were dead. Next to me was a blonde haired little girl who was dressed in a white dress, and she was doing something to the tank. What I don't know. Not too far off from us (It looked like we were in a restaurant kitchen) was a beach with the waves crashing and foaming (I could hear the waves). Then the scene changes slightly with the little girl never leaving my side and a small snake slithered into the tank (which seemed a little smaller) with the dead fish as well as a few live fish of the same description. The snake wrapped itself around something in the tank (what I don't know). I was calm through the whole dream a little puzzled and a bit surprised upon seeing the snake but calm...

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
fish
white
kitchen
ocean
water
snake

ECA: Libertarian drowning cat dream -- 2/18/98

The following is a portion of a dream that I received on 2/19/98. This dream contains materials and issues that we can all relate to, as they are universal.

.......Then, I took Sara to my room, because a big game was just about to start, and there were lots of things there. First of all, you could float around because my room was kind of all underwater, but kind of not because in certain places you could breathe just fine. I had, sometime in the past, taught my cats to do decimal arithmetic, and in honor of the cats, I had designed a pinball game, which whenever you hit certain ramps, it would stimulate my cats doing decimal arithmetic. The game or some other video game was in my room. Sara was also in my room, and since the game had just begun, I was trying to drown her. However, I was doing it very nicely and she didn't’t seem to mind. The plan was that once she fell unconscious from asphyxiation, I would resuscitate her and still have the points for drowning her. I forget the point of the game, but it way a pretty viscous game. I think I was the one organizing it.

Well, just as I was trying to drown Sara, the door, which was opened a crack, opens just a bit further, but nobody comes in. The amount it opened was too thin for a person to squeeze inside. But, as it turns out, my cat came through the door and I was very surprised but happy to see her! However, she went into some other part of the room.....

Symbols to consider and look up in the dream dictionary:
door
game
water
cat
drowning

Basic interpretation of this dream:

The water is symbolic of his emotions and his nonverbal, intuitive and unconscious drives. The math, which he teaches to the cats is symbolic of his intellectual mind, a place where emotions are not important, and are not an issue.
The game may represent his playful, but not always kind nature.

He invites his girlfriend into his room so that he can drown her in his game. In daily life, he most likely, likes to think that he is in control of her feelings and his own, and he tests how far he can push or manipulate her in this way.
Thus, the dream is about control and power.
The dream detail indicated that ECA may not have the greatest amount of respect for the girl, as he was drowning her "very nicely" and she didn't seem to mind. Who in their right mind would allow themselves to be drowned? He probably has some hostility toward her, because of her compliance. He most likely hates her submissive nature and pushes it to the limit in daily life. Their relationship is a game (a mean game). "The plan was that once she fell unconscious from asphyxiation, I would resuscitate her and still have the points for drowning her." However, as he is about to drown her, the cat walks into the room. In other words, he may want to overwhelm and control her emotionally, but as he tries to do that his intellect and other needs that the cat represents come in to play.

Additionally, there seems to be some ambivalence, ECA may not really want to drown Sara. If he did he would have locked the door. Anyway, the cat comes in. In this case the cat represents sexuality and rationality. As the cat walks in he is distracted and the dream changes. In life he may ignore his negative feelings toward his girlfriend. He may not have the highest opinion of her, but she is an object of desire and represents sexual gratification and distraction.

The open doors in the dream, may symbolize the fact that he is open to "visitors". He wants people to come into his life, give him ideas and engage him.

Last updated: 2/8/08