Dream Case #13

I have a dream that I thought perhaps you could interpret for me.

It begins with my sister-in-law and I standing inside this house that I did not recognize, but it felt like I was home.  When you open the doors to go outside there is only water surrounding the house.  We dove into the water and could breathe freely and talk while underwater.  We had to wear glasses that seemed to be everyday glasses like I wear.  I noticed I had "the wrong ones" so I told my sister-in-law (Janie) that we had to go back as I had the wrong glasses.  We went back and I got a different pair of the same type of eye glasses.  While back in the house, we walked into the living room where there were fountains of water shooting all over the place in a very controlled manner...like they do in the water and laser shows you see on TV.  It reminded me of Disney World and Epcot as the water was flowing from one opening into another in a very controlled manner....except for one stream of water.  The one stream came from the couch and ended at my heart.  When I moved, the water stream moved as well so that it was always aiming at my heart.  It did not hurt, but gave me a very happy feeling.  I moved back and forth showing Janie the water hitting my heart.  She just stood there in disbelief.  I said to her "I wonder if it is Steve!"  (Steve was my boyfriend of 12 years, my soulmate, who was killed in a tractor-tanker accident in January).  I said to the stream of water "Steve, is that you?" and I said "move up and down fast if it is".  Then the water started moving up and down very quickly.  My heart raced, but I still had a happy feeling inside of me.  It was an overwhelming feeling of joy that my Steve was controlling that water.  He had always said to me when he was alive (before we parted for work or to go anywhere), "I am always with you.  Just look down at your heart..I am right there".  Then he would point to my heart and touch me at that point.    I remember saying to Janie... "Look!  It IS Steve!!" in a very happy, excited tone.  She just keep staring blanking in awe as though she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

At that point I woke up and felt an overwhelming happiness and sadness at the same time.  I cried but I smiled too.   What is your interpretation of this dream?

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Let's look at some of the basics of the dream for starters. The house, which you say felt like home, denotes a certain amount of comfort with yourself. (Houses typically represent one's personal being in dreams.) The fact that the house is surrounded by water means that you are feeling surrounded by emotions. Not necessarily overwhelmed—this isn't a flood—but emotions are all around you. You don't say whether the water was clear or turbulent or muddy, but think about these things; they help you see what "feelings" you're dealing with.

The fact that you and your sister-in-law dove into the water and could talk while underwater suggests that you are comfortable sharing your feelings with one another.

Meanwhile, glasses are about perspective. In the dream, you say you have the wrong ones. Something in your subconscious is telling you you're not looking at something the right way. Perhaps you are so wrapped up in the feelings, you aren't seeing something.

Later, the controlled fountains suggest very controlled emotions within yourself (the house). Maybe you've worked hard to keep yourself together after losing Steve so tragically. You've probably had to clamp down on much of your feelings just to maintain day-to-day life. Steve, I believe, was reminding you to be happy by sending the water to your heart. (Yes, I do believe it is possible to have contact with loved ones and people far away in dreams, even those who have passed on; I've had it happen quite often myself.) Even if you don't believe it was Steve—and that's up to you—your subconscious at the very least is trying to prompt you into feeling good.

Given the glasses thing, too, it may be that Steve wants you to notice something you have not been paying attention to, something you've been looking at the wrong way. Whatever it is, when you do see it (and notice you didn't "see" Steve until you'd switched glasses), it will make you feel warm inside.

More About House Numbers

Or, really, about one particular house number. I found this site that will analyze your street address. Fun to play with, but check out the result for 221B Baker Street. Yes, that's right, home of the redoubtable Sherlock Holmes.

Your address adds to 5 

This address reflects the unconventional intelligent mind. Adventure and change are main ingredients. Inspires independence, freedom, individualism and creativity. A lack of direction and a tendency for chaos can limit financial growth. However, the rewards are a unique perspective and freedom of thought. Single adults at an address that adds to 5 tend to have an easier time to find company but a hard time making it last. Lacks responsibility and reliability. Not a good house for conventional dogmatic people and should also be avoided by those with alcohol or drug problems.

Strengthen the positive influence of this address with: Lots of color. Mix and match odd furniture. Unconventional is the key word. Open space, open windows. A bit of disarray and clutter is fine.

Spot on, if you happen to be familiar with Holmes and Watson.

House Numbers

Maria Shaw Lawson featured this in her latest newsletter and I found it interesting. In order to figure out your house number, you must take the digits of your street address and add them together until you get to a single number. For example, if you live at 8668 Somewhere Lane: 8 + 6 + 6 + 8 = 28 and then 2 + 8 = 10 and finally 1 + 0 = 1. Your house number would be 1.

#1

This house is usually one of new beginnings. When you move into a home with this number, you are usually embarking on a new life, a new idea, a new path or something big. It inspires independence.  There is likely to be someone living in this house that is a go-getter. This house may stand out on the street in some way. Living here supports growth, advancement and usually a person will find themselves in a position of authority or can be famous in some way. If you are not doing well in life and then you move into a Number One House, your life will improve.

#2

A number 2 house is sure to be a comfortable and attractive home, with nice people who are willing to share with other people. This home supports a marriage, a union, a partnership and will offer a couple lots of growth. Relationships can flourish and often the couple will work together toward common goals in this home. 

The number 2 house is often decorated with tasteful furnishings, and has a loving energy. It also is probably filled with lots of goodies, knick knacks, good food and love! Folks will be drawn to your home if you live here and feel welcomed here. It supports a healthy marriage and is a good place to move to start a new relationship.

#3 

The Number 3 house is fueled with lot of communication and creativity. The neighbors are like family and the doors are open for people to visit. Three Houses are great for writers, artists and people who work in sales and communication. It can be a place where people come to party and hang out. People who live here will at times feel a little restless and probably have a lot of electronic equipment, phones, TVs, stereos, etc. Children are welcome here! Folks who live here like to be a part of their community and often like the local gossip!

#4 

A number 4 House is likely to be traditional and a solid home. It could have been built years ago and housed many generations of the same family. Or if new, it will provide the same for many family members. It will seem like Home Sweet Home to many and this is where the holidays will be celebrated! It provides a strong foundation for families and marriages. However there can be some differences between the two people living there.....they may have completely different points of view so it is best for everyone to have their own areas of the home they control. For example; A teenager and a strict parent. Folks who live here will work very hard. People who live in a number 4 house will have to work very hard and try to be a stable force in their family's lives. This house doesn't change much and many owners stay for many years.

#5

A number 5 house is a very busy place There's lots going on and often people living here have too much on their plate. It can be cluttered or a little messy because there is so much happening. But it can also be a fun house where people throw parties, and get together to hang out. There are always people coming and going Number 5 can be an exciting address to live at, especially for single folks. People who work in communication, news, sales, journalism, broadcasting, etc. are at home in a number 5 house. The telephone and computer are very important in this house and are apt to be the most used items! It's hard to sit still in this house and there will be lots of changes in décor over time.

#6

This is certain to be an attractive place.  People who live here are ambitious and driven but also traditional. They want nice things.... quality before quantity. This is a house of balance so a good place to get your life in order and create work and play. Living here can attain many memorable moments. It is also a good place to have a home office. Kids, pets, older folks are all part of the family. Photos of ancestors hang on the walls. Things are saved for years and recycled. This for the most part, can be a peaceful home. If there is discord, it won't last long.

#7 

The 7 address inspires spirituality, psychic ability and such. It can be a place where people come to heal and grow spiritually. Changes in the way people look at life happen while living here. They look to a higher influence. Gemstones, religious symbols, new age artifacts and books probably fill the house. Soul mates buy this type of house together. However a problem with a number 7 house is dampness, or with drainage. Check the basement of for leaks. Most 7 homes will have a special room for mediation or reading.

#8 

A great address for everyone who wants to make money! Very good for people who own their own company and this house will likely go up in value and prove to be a good investment down the road. People can attain wealth by moving into this house.

#9 

The 9 house is a very karmic house. You will have vivid dreams here. It also is a place where people feel drawn to and so do stray animals. People will want to come over and stay on your couch for weeks! They feel safe here. It is a safe haven for many. Older kids do not want to leave or they will return time and time again. This house may also be haunted. People usually move into this type of a house when they need comfort, they are ending something in their life, they are in transition or they are humanitarians and want to take care of others.

Dream Case #12

So I dreamt that I had these two little scab like spots on one finger and picked them off.  Next thing I see are these gross black winged beetle like bugs coming out of the little holes left from the scab I picked off.  They kept coming out and I could see them crawling under my skin.  I was so horrified.  I wanted to cutoff my finger. But they kept coming out.  I dreamt this twice in one night. It still horrified me even when I'm awake!  What does it mean?

As dreams go, this one is pretty straightforward. Something that has been healing—a past hurt in a relationship, perhaps, or with family—has come back to "bug" you. Thing is, you've been picking at it, just as you picked at the scabs in the dream. Even if just subconsciously, you've been scratching at this old wound. If you continue to do so, you will interrupt the healing process and cause more damage.

Dream Case #11

This has been repeated multiple times. More so in the last few years.

The setting of this dream varies, and what happens is we are outside in our neighborhood when I start to notice funnel clouds in the sky. Sometimes we have to run to get into the house (not necessarily our house, but it's usually a house), but we always have plenty of time before the tornadoes hit. In the dream I'll usually watch the sky a bit and there are multiple tornadoes coming down. I don't know if this matters, but the tornadoes usually have a cartoony quality to them, although they are 'real' and the rest of the setting, like the houses, are realistic.

Sometimes lots of people are there, sometimes it's just a few. Sometimes a tornado will hit the house, but not often. We're always safe in the end. What sticks out to me most about the dreams though is the act of watching these funnel clouds dropping out of the sky. It's fascinating.

Okay, so you don't mention what you're doing outside in the dreams before the tornadoes arrive, but maybe that doesn't matter. The key element would be that you are exposed and vulnerable, danger arises, and you seek out shelter. But from what?

The tornadoes can represent any number of things. Usually they'd symbolize whirling emotions, destructive and volatile relationships, and possibly violent outbursts. If it were only one tornado, I might think you were the one feeling so keyed up, but because there are several it's more likely you feel surrounded by people behaving emotionally and unpredictably. You seek shelter from their behavior.

Another possibility is that the tornadoes represent something different from yourself. The fact that you watch them and are fascinated by them lends itself to this interpretation. Because this thing (or things, or person, or people) is "unknown" and "foreign," you still feel the need to seek shelter . . . Because, again, you find it unpredictable and are uncertain in how to deal with it.

And then there is any combination of these interpretations (i.e., you may be fascinated by people who are reacting irrationally or emotionally to something, people having tantrums, which seems strange and foreign to you, or perhaps you are interested in someone else's volatile relationship, etc.). You're always safe in the end, though. At the core, this dream is about observing while keeping your distance.

And the fact that the tornadoes are cartoon-like only adds to the idea that, though real, they carry less weight and have less potential impact than a more realistic tornado might. Think of the Tasmanian Devil in Looney Tunes, who causes trouble but never more than Bugs and friends can deal with. These tornadoes are disruptive (as are the people or situations in your life that they represent), but they will not cause you any real grief.

Since you say this dream recurs and has become more frequent, perhaps you should review who or what has been increasingly disruptive in your life.

Dream Case #10

Another dream about being attacked . . .

I don't have nightmares often, but when I do, it's usually an unknown assailant. I know they want to hurt me, meaning rape or kill, but I don't know why. The setting for the dream varies, but in the end right before I wake up, I am on the run. That bad guy(s) is chasing me, and they're just about to catch me when I start flapping my arms and am able to fly away. I sail up into the sky and escape. (I always escape.)

It's kind of funny now, because I've had this dream happen enough, that I seem to know now (in my dreams) I can escape that way. So I may be anxious, but when I wake up, my heart is not in a race and I'm not having cold sweats.

Any insight?

I'd be curious to know whether these nightmares recur at specific times of stress in your life. You dream of an unknown assailant, someone you can't see. This can mean a lot of things: that you have a hidden enemy, that you're feeling assaulted (if not physically then mentally or emotionally) by someone or something (work, life in general), or even that YOU are doing this to yourself, that some dark aspect of yourself is attempting to harm your healthy psyche. Look through these possibilities and see which one makes the most sense to you.

But here's the cool thing. Because you've dealt with this situation so often before, that healthy psyche of yours now knows how to escape whatever is trying to harm it. The fact that you fly away makes your getaway clean; you literally rise above and a free from what is trying to oppress you. This is fantastic. Every time this unknown evil tries again, you respond with a learned defense mechanism. This is the sign of someone able to cope and deal with stress and pressure. Good for you!

Dream Case #9

I was preparing for three stages of physical attack and then they started.   The first was manageable: light and easily bearable, hits and light kicks. There is a pause and then begins the second stage: much more intense but still manageable. Then the final stage which is brutal and violent, and I make every attempt to fight back but I am paralyzed; I want to move to defend myself but I cannot make my limbs move at all, and I am being violently beaten, feeling defeated as if they won.  Whoever they are.

My goodness. This dream is relatively straight forward, I'd say. You're feeling assaulted. And though in the dream the attack is physical, in reality it could be emotional, psychological . . . Or, yes, physical. Or all of the above.

Remember, too, that emotional and psychological beatings take a physical toll.

What is unclear to me is where in the process you currently are. You say you were preparing for the attacks, so you seemed to know they were coming. This could be your subconscious sending up a warning flag so that you can ready yourself for future troubles. But maybe you have already passed through one or two, or even all the stages you mention. Maybe you successfully fended off some early problems, and then some more difficult issues, but are now feeling defeated and paralyzed, unable to get up and try again, incapable of taking any more.

It is interesting that you cannot see your assailant(s). This suggests that there is no one part of your life that is causing you particular trouble, but that you feel life in general is beating you down. Honestly, when I hear/read about this kind of dream, I feel a deep concern for the dreamer because I worry that the person might be depressed and in need of more help than I can give them with simple interpretation. If you truly are feeling defeated, my advice would be to find a counselor of some kind to guide you through these rough waters. And if you already have one, good! Keep up the fight as best you can.

Which brings me to my disclaimer: These interpretations are for entertainment purposes only and are not meant to act as medical advice of any kind.