Regardless of your political views, there is so much media focus on the
upcoming November 7th elections, that it would be close to impossible for
your Waking-self not to notice. But how about your Dream-self?
We don't usually dream about current events. By and large, we dream about
the people and relationships in our immediate life. Sometimes we dream about
larger-than-life characters such as movie stars, but it is rare that we go
beyond that personal sphere. Nevertheless, there are times when the dreams
of entire populations share some common themes.
After September 11, many people had dreams that referred to the World Trade
Center. A Brooklyn woman dreamed she was searching through the rubble for
her childhood security blanket. That's a very direct and, for her, painful
reference. A California man dreamed he was lost in New York on Bombay
Street. Since he knew of no such street, the pun in "Bomb Bay" indirectly
suggested a fear that the San Francisco Bay might also be bombed.
Many people responded to the Hurricane Katrina disaster with related dreams,
which ranged from being swept away by floods to cleaning up the mess.
Elections are not quite the same as disasters, but their importance can
bring them into our dreams.
Because our dreams tend to resonate with the emotions we are experiencing,
you may dream you are talking to the elected leaders you prefer and everyone
is listening to you. You might dream your side has lost the election by one
vote.
Don't be surprised if your dreams tell you what you want to hear. One
Democrat, in 2004, jumped the gun and dreamed:
I was napping on the sofa while my daughter watched TV to see who was
winning the election. Suddenly I awoke [in the dream] to lots of cheering
and triumphant sounding music. I asked, "Who won? Did someone win?" My
daughter just sat and smiled at me. Again I asked her, "Who won, who won?
Did Kerry win?" Finally she answered me with, "YES!!!!" We were overjoyed
and started calling friends to make sure everyone knew.
John Kerry, of course, lost that election.
Summary
If you are actively involved in election campaigning, you may well be too
exhausted to dream.
If you are unsure who to vote for, maybe you’ll have a dream that tips the
balance.
As with all dreams, consider the Dream-self as a separate person and have a
conversation. That other part of you may well have a very different slant on
politics than you do.
"FOUR EXPERTS TRY TO GET INSIDE READERS' HEADS"
That's the title of a piece in last Sunday's Washington Post in which I was
a featured expert. Readers sent in dreams and several dream experts made
comments on them.
I didn't think I was trying to get "into readers' heads" but I did ask the
same kinds of questions I discuss in these columns. Regular readers of my
column will recognize the "Movie method" and "Continue the dream"
techniques.
Dream Groups
The Saturday drop-in group ($20) is from 10 am to noon at 2315 Prince Street
in Berkeley. The nearest major cross street is Ashby and Telegraph. Please
let me know if you are coming.
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email: davidj@dreamreplay.com
phone: (510) 644 2369
DreamRePlay web site: http://dreamreplay.com
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