MEANINGS BEHIND A DREAM

I have always wondered what the meanings are behind my dreams. I have read many books on the subject as well as researching it on the internet. As much as I can gather from these sources is that although dream symbols remain an important part of dream analyzing, each dreamer has their own different meaning to what a particular dream means to them. For instance if one dreams of a cat, it could mean independence, feminine sexuality, creativity or power. A black cat could mean bad luck or evil threats. A white cat means difficulties. A cat without a tail means losing your independence. But if you love cats all of these meanings would be useless to you. It simply means you enjoy their company. Whereas the symbol of a dog in your dream means loyalty and protection it depends on what the dog is doing. A dog bite could mean betrayal or fears of moving forward with your life goals. A barking dog is associated with pleasures or unwanted company. You could feel like you’re being treated like a dog and it has surfaced in your dream. Each symbol means something different as it surrounds a different characteristic.

Over the years I have had many crazy dreams. Some have made an impact on me because it was like a warning sign of an unpleasant event about to happen. Many times if I was to dream of a departed loved one, I found myself losing yet another loved one within weeks of that dream. A scary thought I know, but true whether coincidence or not. Dreaming of muddy water or smoke always made me worry of the health of people I cared about because my mother told me someone usually got sick after she had a dream like that. I found that to be true about myself dreaming of muddy water or smoke. Coincidence or not it has happened. Most dreams are so crazy it is evident they are just a way to release stress and reality.

I had a crazy dream a few months ago where I saw a fox getting away with one of my chickens. It was as if I was living in the 1800s and I had a long skirt on. I quickly grabbed my Winchester and took aim on the critter. I shot and he kept running with my chicken in his mouth. I shot again and this time he fell to the ground. From behind me, ran a character like seen in a western TV show and he retrieved the fox. “Good shot, right in the back of his head,” he yelled. “But I missed him the first shot,” I said discussed with myself. “No, Ma’am, you took a nick right out of his ear,” he chuckled. I woke up. I thought the dream most likely came from me watching a lot of westerns on television. I don’t have any chickens and have never shot anything. But yet a fox is quite a unique dream symbol associated with betrayal or being out witted or out foxed. As weeks went by I found out I did have someone who had been doing just that. But I won’t discuss it here. The point is I found a meaning to this dream that had nothing to do with me watching westerns at all.

A couple nights ago I had another crazy dream. This time I was standing in a yard in town, sorting clothes like one would do for a yard sale. A man stopped by and said to me, “Ma’am, the lady down the street who gave you sweaters for your fund raiser wants them back.” I said, “What lady? What sweaters?” He said, “You best be finding them ma’am or I’ll have to take you to jail.” This man was Mat Dillion who is a lawman character in an old western television show called Gunsmoke. I woke up. Again I’m thinking there’s a connection with my watching all those westerns on television. But after looking up what I could find about dreams. I discovered that yard sales in a dream mean recycling past experiences and ideas and making use of your old skills and ideas. The actor symbol would depend how you saw them whether in character or not. Well this actor was in character as the marshal he betrays on the old western series. The police symbol means failure in honoring commitments or obligations. In a nutshell I believe this dream was telling me to stop slacking on my writing career and get back to work.

Although I love watching the old classic westerns and have related dreams as I sleep. I truly believe they brought meaning to dreams I may have otherwise over looked. For instance, the fox was warning me of being out witted by someone close to me. Had I paid attention sooner to the warning sign I would have known I was being tricked long before I discovered the foxy outcome. And for the yard sale and Marshal Dillion, I know I need to get back to work on putting my old skills and ideas to work. Slacking on obligations to myself as a creative writer could contribute to whether or not I succeed or fail. At least, I do remember these crazy western style dreams. Most dreams I don't recall at all. So if these dreams are giving me the wake up call I need, I owe it to watching the old westerns.