My Childhood Dreams of Terror and Comfort

 

In 1957, I lived in a basement apartment with my family of four. After my parents tucked me in for the night and turned off the lights, my bedroom was so dark that I couldn't see my hand if I held it inches from my face, which became a problem after I went to the zoo one day. 

For over a year, I had recurring nightmares of carnivorous beasts, mostly bears, wolves, and lions, lunging at me and baring their fangs. A line from my bedtime prayer-- "If I should die before I wake"-- did nothing to ease my fears.

Mother began leaving on the hall light and cracked the bedroom door open so that a sliver of light fell on my pillow. It didn't chase the nightmares away, but the light allowed me to see I was safe at home in my bed.  

The recurring animal nightmares lasted several months, and then my dream life took a turn.

When we moved out of the basement and into another state, we visited my grandparents' home, which was bright and comforting, with pictures of Jesus on the walls and Bibles on nightstands. After we arrived, I napped in a guestroom and dreamed I was on a boat, drifting on a placid sea at sunset.  Behind me on the boat's deck, the bears, wolves, and lions of my nightmares stood alert yet calm, as a large sailboat floated toward us.  A man in a white robe stood at the port side of the boat with his arms raised, and when the boats nearly touched,  a plank linked the two vessels.  

The beasts immediately crossed the plank and joined the man in the sailboat.  Soon they sailed toward the setting sun, leaving me behind.  I never had another terrifying animal dream.  

I didn't need a dream dictionary to tell me that the second dream signified my young life moving in a new, hopeful direction.  I always thought the rescuer was Jesus, whom I could rely on to protect, comfort, and love me.  

Decades later, the boat dream still held its power.  One evening, while I was babysitting, my five-year-old grandson fought going to bed.  He said that he was having nightmares.  When I recounted the dreams of my early childhood, ending with the terrible beasts disappearing in the sunset, he instantly relaxed, looked at me with his big blue eyes, and said that the dream of Jesus taking the animals away was "amazing."  He looked sleepy and calm as he lay his head on the pillow, hugging his plush lion.

Childhood nightmares are common in young children; however, experts caution that if nightmares become too frequent, they can result in sleep anxiety and deprive children (and parents) of sleep. The nightmares I had in 1957 likely contributed to a lifetime of spontaneous waking up through the night, but I also have reassuring memories of the second dream, which reminds me that God sends messengers to tell me I'm loved.  

More dreams and their interpretations will appear under the Label "Dreams." 

--Cynthia

Wolf image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

Boat image by Asmodeus94 from Pixabay

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Dream Interpretations--From the Bizarre to the Profound

 

Have you ever awakened from a strange dream and wondered, "Where did that come from?" Somehow, amid the darkness of night, your logical brain produced a jumbled plot filled with zany images, and you woke up feeling like you had spent the night tumbling into a carnival house of mirrors.  

Bizarre dreams can horrify, mystify, or perplex us.  Sometimes they provoke us to act on a problem, create a masterpiece, or laugh out loud.

At breakfast the other day, my husband remarked that he had dreamed something "really weird." I perked up from my pre-caffeine morning sleepiness.  His dreams are often nonsensical and silly, and after a stressful week, I was eager to revel in a humorous story.   

He dreamed that he walked down a flight of stairs to find that the basement of his childhood home had been beautifully redecorated with new furniture and brightly painted walls.  Lying on a plush rug, his deceased mother looked up at him with a loving, contented smile. Nice image, except that her entire body was wrapped in a large soft tortilla, like a burrito, with only her sweet face exposed. We both laughed.

"What did THAT mean?" he asked.

"Well,'  I said, giggling, "You love Mexican food and you love your mother, but I'll let you figure that one out."   

Maybe his sweet mother's spirit just wanted to hear us laugh.   

I forget most of my dreams, especially the nonsensical, fleeting ones, but the more drawn-out, vivid dreams have proven prophetic and significant. At least three childhood dreams were so profound that I remember them sixty years later.  See two posts

Early on, I understood the significance and power of dreams from biblical stories in a Golden Book my mother read to me.   I was in awe of Joseph's prophetic dreams as a young teen wearing a coat of many colors and marveled at his bold interpretations of Pharaoh's dreams as an enslaved man.  Joseph predicted famine throughout Egypt after recognizing metaphors and symbols in the ruler's dreams, predictions that compelled the Egyptians to store enough food to save hundreds of lives. I didn't understand symbols, metaphors, and archetypes until much later, but I realized that even my childhood dreams could be symbolic. 

As a teen, I encountered the typical, anxiety-ridden dreams of walking through high school halls in my underwear, forgetting to go to class until finals, or fleeing from a tornado or predator by flying up into a blue sky.  One night (in my thirties), my child and I dreamed the exact same dream about terrorists invading our home.  We compared notes and details--everything matched.  No hidden meaning in our mutual dreams, but our joint experience was unforgettable. 

Then, during a debilitating illness in 2002, I began having spiritual experiences and profound dreams that I recorded in a journal. 

The Power of  Symbols and Archetypes in Dreams

As a lifelong reader of literature, poetry, and drama, I value metaphors and archetypes in stories and dreams.  Dreams laden with symbols can help us solve problems and ignite our creativity; reveal goals, intentions, and insights; and illuminate what is blocking us from understanding our spiritual selves.  

Psychologists claim that we are the best authority for personal dream interpretation, but websites featuring universal archetypes and symbols can also be helpful.  As you read the recounts and interpretations of my dreams, you might wonder how I remember so many details.  

Like other serious dreamers, I keep a notebook beside my bed and quickly write down the entire dream as soon as I wake up.  I fill in the blanks when specific details come to mind throughout the day.  I have left a basket of half-folded laundry sitting on the counter while I dash to my office to add thoughts and insights to my notes.

Years later, when I read about a dream in my spiritual journal, I see flashes of images in my mind's eye.*  Sometimes, I add to the interpretation because I have new insights as I age into wisdom.  

Please read accounts of my dreams and their universal interpretations under the Label "Dreams."  Feel free to share your dreams.  

--Cynthia

Image of Dream Catcher by Orange Fox from Pixabay

* I have aphantasia, an inability to "see" objects in my mind.  Tell me to think of a rose, and I see a quick flash, and then it's gone.  I can imagine how a rose looks, with soft curling petals, but the image is fleeting.  On the other hand, images freely take residence in my mind when I'm dreaming or have a waking vision.  

This blog post also appears on Elders Speaking, a group blog.

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