Art by Ina RH Dreams can reveal a lot. Dreaming is not only when the processing of the days and weeks events occurs but also when inner guidance speaks through images, symbolism and scenarios that offer direction. Dream interpretation is best done by the dreamer as their guidance gives the perfect visual and emotional picture to instill the message. Certainly, there are beneficial archetypes that are invoked and yet each dream is also a distillation of an individual’s experience.....
Last night, I had a dream that revealed one obstacle after another in my path. It started with taking my sister and mother to the theater. They were to meet me there and left earlier than I did. I found myself walking across a long grassy field. As I looked down, I saw a snake coiled up in the grass. It did not frighten me. I walked around it and noticed that the field was filled with coiled up snakes. Some of them were hidden with just their head showing. I said to myself, “Oh they are just garter snakes and won’t hurt me.” I proceeded to simply walk around them noticing their eyes and shiny scales as they watched me.
Suddenly, I was at the bottom of a very steep thousand foot tall hill that was covered in snow. I had on semi-dressy walking shoes. The slope was slick. I made the decision to side step up the incline as the easiest way to get to the top. As soon as I started side stepping up the hill, I was at the top where there was a wide parking lot. Just then, my sister and mother pulled up in a car. There was an entrance to the theater. We could see a very long line of people and discovered that we were on the top floor of many levels below. Looking down the staircase, I saw the line of people on all floors extending to the stairs. Since all of the lines were long, we waited at the top one.
Suddenly, I was at the bottom of a very steep thousand foot tall hill that was covered in snow. I had on semi-dressy walking shoes. The slope was slick. I made the decision to side step up the incline as the easiest way to get to the top. As soon as I started side stepping up the hill, I was at the top where there was a wide parking lot. Just then, my sister and mother pulled up in a car. There was an entrance to the theater. We could see a very long line of people and discovered that we were on the top floor of many levels below. Looking down the staircase, I saw the line of people on all floors extending to the stairs. Since all of the lines were long, we waited at the top one.
Photo by Susan Yin Once again, the scene moved to approaching the ticket booth. I decided to find a bathroom before going in the theater. Finding the bathroom was not easy. At the entrance there was a maze like labyrinth with many hallways and rooms going off in all directions. With each one I looked into there were lockers, showers, rows of sinks but no toilets. Finally, turning a corner there was a toilet room tucked on the side. The door was only a half door, which could not close all of the way. A few people began to push inside and wanting privacy, I decided to leave for the theater instead of using the toilet. (Probably a really good decision in a dream!!)
My sister was waiting for me and we hurried inside with my mother. The room was long and narrow divided in half by a partial wall. At the far edge of the room a high column rose up with the stage at the top. It was facing the narrow width of the room not the long length. This meant that only the people at that end would be able to see the performance and even so it would be difficult to view because the stage was so high. There were large gaps between the occupied seats. Checking with the people seated, I was informed that all of the seats were saved. Sure enough, coins were lined up on all of them. A wide swath of space on the floor lay between the rows of seats and the stage. It looked like a good place to sit but my sister and mother did not like the idea and went back to seats they found on the other side of the partition at the end of the room with no view.
The producer/director of the play was standing at the foot of the stage column. I told him about the seating predicament. He said that the venue had been moved and he was disappointed but there would be another performance in a couple of months. I asked him if my tickets could be exchanged for that performance. He told me to check with the ticketing agent. Going back to my sister and mother patiently sitting and eating food at the other end of the room, I asked my sister for the tickets after explaining how we may be able to exchange them. She handed them to me but they were covered in the smoked salmon that they had been eating. The writing on the tickets was worn off.
I Woke Up!
Sounds crazy doesn’t it…with all of those obstacles in the way and still not seeing the show? What occurred to me as I reviewed this dream was about my emotional state and thought process as each obstacle appeared. When I awoke and thought about the dream, I first saw it as a series of frustrating experiences. That is how I could have approached each situation but in the dream I did not. Strangely, I was never frustrated or annoyed in the dream but just kept pressing on.
When each obstacle appeared, I made a decision about the circumstance. With the snakes, “Oh, they are only harmless garter snakes.” With the snow covered steep incline, “I will side-step up the hill.” With the ticket line, “I will wait in line.” With the bathroom, “I need privacy so I will leave.” With the theater, “I will ask others for their help.” Each time it was finding a solution and moving forward dispassionately. Taking each situation one at a time and not rushing.
My inner guidance was showing me how to approach the obstacles in my life. This past year there have been many unforeseen obstacles and situations that have come up and as many other people have experienced there has been a lot of waiting. Once a decision was made in my dream that situation took care of itself quickly. The pattern of making a decision without a lot of drama or worry but patiently and methodically taking appropriate action for the circumstance cleared the way. The circumstances were not pleasant ones. The point of the dream was not to wave a magic wand and create bliss.
Life will always be full of obstacles. The lesson is to know how to navigate them by calmly observing, thinking through different possibilities, and taking reasonable action in the present moment. Keeping the focus on the present circumstance allowed me to look at the choices with lucid clarity without the distraction, worry or overwhelm of thinking about the outcome. My inner guidance was in charge. There was a desired outcome but it didn’t interfere with moving forward with what could be done. In the dream, I was looking at what was right in front of me without expectations.
As we enter another year of obstacles, uncertainty and waiting, being in the present moment with whatever confronts us is our work. Our world is changing and has changed. In order to adapt, we need to see how our rushing around and treating every hurdle and hardship as a terrifying fire creating untoward anxiety and stress is not the solution. The capacity to trust our inner guidance, develop patience, focus on the tasks in front of us, and open to alternate possibilities, builds our resilience, and improves our mental and emotional states. This allows us to expand our faculties in a composed grounded manner where creative and innovative decisions and solutions arise.
We will learn and we will grow. I believe that humans are adaptable and resourceful. These times of extreme challenges are also the times when we have the opportunity to cultivate our best selves.
My sister was waiting for me and we hurried inside with my mother. The room was long and narrow divided in half by a partial wall. At the far edge of the room a high column rose up with the stage at the top. It was facing the narrow width of the room not the long length. This meant that only the people at that end would be able to see the performance and even so it would be difficult to view because the stage was so high. There were large gaps between the occupied seats. Checking with the people seated, I was informed that all of the seats were saved. Sure enough, coins were lined up on all of them. A wide swath of space on the floor lay between the rows of seats and the stage. It looked like a good place to sit but my sister and mother did not like the idea and went back to seats they found on the other side of the partition at the end of the room with no view.
The producer/director of the play was standing at the foot of the stage column. I told him about the seating predicament. He said that the venue had been moved and he was disappointed but there would be another performance in a couple of months. I asked him if my tickets could be exchanged for that performance. He told me to check with the ticketing agent. Going back to my sister and mother patiently sitting and eating food at the other end of the room, I asked my sister for the tickets after explaining how we may be able to exchange them. She handed them to me but they were covered in the smoked salmon that they had been eating. The writing on the tickets was worn off.
I Woke Up!
Sounds crazy doesn’t it…with all of those obstacles in the way and still not seeing the show? What occurred to me as I reviewed this dream was about my emotional state and thought process as each obstacle appeared. When I awoke and thought about the dream, I first saw it as a series of frustrating experiences. That is how I could have approached each situation but in the dream I did not. Strangely, I was never frustrated or annoyed in the dream but just kept pressing on.
When each obstacle appeared, I made a decision about the circumstance. With the snakes, “Oh, they are only harmless garter snakes.” With the snow covered steep incline, “I will side-step up the hill.” With the ticket line, “I will wait in line.” With the bathroom, “I need privacy so I will leave.” With the theater, “I will ask others for their help.” Each time it was finding a solution and moving forward dispassionately. Taking each situation one at a time and not rushing.
My inner guidance was showing me how to approach the obstacles in my life. This past year there have been many unforeseen obstacles and situations that have come up and as many other people have experienced there has been a lot of waiting. Once a decision was made in my dream that situation took care of itself quickly. The pattern of making a decision without a lot of drama or worry but patiently and methodically taking appropriate action for the circumstance cleared the way. The circumstances were not pleasant ones. The point of the dream was not to wave a magic wand and create bliss.
Life will always be full of obstacles. The lesson is to know how to navigate them by calmly observing, thinking through different possibilities, and taking reasonable action in the present moment. Keeping the focus on the present circumstance allowed me to look at the choices with lucid clarity without the distraction, worry or overwhelm of thinking about the outcome. My inner guidance was in charge. There was a desired outcome but it didn’t interfere with moving forward with what could be done. In the dream, I was looking at what was right in front of me without expectations.
As we enter another year of obstacles, uncertainty and waiting, being in the present moment with whatever confronts us is our work. Our world is changing and has changed. In order to adapt, we need to see how our rushing around and treating every hurdle and hardship as a terrifying fire creating untoward anxiety and stress is not the solution. The capacity to trust our inner guidance, develop patience, focus on the tasks in front of us, and open to alternate possibilities, builds our resilience, and improves our mental and emotional states. This allows us to expand our faculties in a composed grounded manner where creative and innovative decisions and solutions arise.
We will learn and we will grow. I believe that humans are adaptable and resourceful. These times of extreme challenges are also the times when we have the opportunity to cultivate our best selves.
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