Hi,

What could this dream possibly mean:

I’m walking on a road with my husband. Then I see the sky change. It starts to get beautiful colors of purple and orange mixed with grayish clouds. “Did you do that at work”, he asks me having with a little annoyed and accusing tone. I think that is funny, how could I do anything like that. I want to go further to see better. Then we see it. It is a big fire. It colors the sky. The further we go to see it better, the bigger it appears. It is a huge forest fire. We stare at it so much, that when we start to look other places, too, we notice that everywhere is starting more fires. It is arson, we figure out terrified, and we start to get scared. Someone wants to burn the whole village. The road we are on is clearly blocked and it is the main way out. There is maybe unknown back roads and back forest. But first we have to find our children. We left them playing outside, but are not sure exactly where. I am just thinking how scared they might be. If a fire starts next to them, they would get very scared. They would run or hide. They could be anywhere then, ... very, very difficult to find. My husband is not very fast. I want to jump into a car to get moving faster. But instead of getting into car, in my dream, we both have to fit one foot into a small glass jar at the same time, to get that “weird car” moving. Then I woke up, being scared and worried about finding the children.

Thanks,
Orchid

Dear Orchid,

It will help to know if you have any personal associations with any part of the dream.

Has anything been happening at your workplace that has a destructive element towards you? Looking for the children could be an indiciation that you are not looking after them, that is if you have children in your real life, or they could represent some new energy in your life. Does any of this click for you? That is makes you go Ah Ha, when you recognise it.

One other thing, I get an association to 'Cinderella'. Her name was derived from cinders in the fireplace and the glass jar may be the glass slipper. The 'weird car' could be the pumpkin coach. I will look into this and see if this story has something in it for you. Cheers, Stephen G.

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Orchid,
Even though it does not always make a difference, knowing the age of the dreamer is important when interpreting a dream. Jung saw many instances of almost identical dreams of older and younger men, yet the interpretations, and meanings, were totally different. If you are under 30 your dreams may deal as much or more with personal issues more so than the deeper issues people at mid-life tend to experience.
Thanks,
Gerard
twat twam asi

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Hi Orchid,

I made some notes on your dream. Not sure if I'm on the mark so to speak so a response would be most helpful. I could be way off here. Let me know if my response is close to what you're experiencing in your life now.

Best regards,
Kathy

I’m walking on a road with my husband.

The road may represent the current path or direction of your life. You represent your feminine self, your husband represents your Animus,your male self.

Then I see the sky change. It starts to get beautiful colors of purple and orange mixed with grayish clouds.
The sky may be your unconscious self or intellect, representing the change within of your inner self. The change may involve survival, anger, negative emotions, confusion or conflict. The grayish clouds may represent ‘clouding’ your emotions.

“Did you do that at work”, he asks me having with a little annoyed and accusing tone.

The male self questions your female self, with possible implication the female self is at the root of the change or emotions. Also, could there be some aspect at your job that is currently in a state of flux or change?

I think that is funny, how could I do anything like that.

Your feminine self or conscious mind is not aware of the true extent that an underlying cause repressed in the unconscious self can effect the conscious mind and outward emotions.

I want to go further to see better. Then we see it.

You want to examine the issue, to understand the symbolism. In essence, you want your unconscious self to present the issue so you can better understand it and possibly fix it.

It is a big fire.

It’s a big issue. The fire may represent the source of the issue (survival, anger, negative emotions, confusion, or conflict).

It colors the sky.

These emotions may be ‘coloring’ your unconscious self although consciously you don’t recognize it.

The further we go to see it better, the bigger it appears.

Continuing to examine the issue you see the issue is more important your inner self than previously acknowledged.

It is a huge forest fire.

You may feel overwhelmed or confused by the changing emotions in your unconscious

We stare at it so much, that when we start to look other places, too, we notice that everywhere is starting more fires. It is arson, we figure out terrified, and we start to get scared. Someone wants to burn the whole village.

Who is starting the fires? Is it your ego? By looking at the issue you it growing out of control. Could ego be responsible for the ‘arson’ or possible self destructive tendencies you may be experiencing? Ego could be causing the fear and using the destruction of self, 'burn the whole village' as it's defense mechanism.

The road we are on is clearly blocked and it is the main way out. There is maybe unknown back roads and back forest.

You feel your current path is blocked. You know there are other paths but you’re unsure yet how to proceed. Are you consciously feeling overwhelmed, confused, abandoned, or lonely, like being lost in a forest, by volatile emotions?

But first we have to find our children.
You may try looking to your inner child for the answer or new path. This may be the opportunity to begin anew or is there something in your childhood, an issue or experience, you first need to revisit & resolve?

We left them playing outside, but are not sure exactly where.

If this is a childhood issue, possible it was ‘left playing outside’ or repressed. If so, this may require a lot of work since it could be repressed deeply into the unconscious due to the nature or level of the trauma you felt. What is repressed, no matter how deeply, the unconscious will continue to express until the issue is addressed and resolved. If not a childhood issue, then examine what part of yourself is on the outside looking in? What part of you feels lost?

I am just thinking how scared they might be.

The feminine self acknowledges this is difficult and fearful process.

If a fire starts next to them, they would get very scared. They would run or hide. They could be anywhere then, ... very, very difficult to find.

Many times the emotions that surface in connection to a deeply repressed issue can cause the self to not want to face the issue preferring to keep the repression intact as in “run & hide”. It may take much work to uncover, or bring up, from repression the issue causing the unwanted emotions or actions. Or if this is a lost part of self, is it afraid and hiding, being "very difficult to find"?

My husband is not very fast.

Fast may be a play on words meaning detoxify. Possible the ego doesn’t want to help resolve the issue or incorporate the 'lost' part of self. Doesn't acknowledge or recognize there is an issue to be resolved.

I want to jump into a car to get moving faster.

The strong feminine self wants to take charge and ‘drive’ the healing or incorporation process to so as not to miss the opportunity and speed the process.

But instead of getting into car, in my dream, we both have to fit one foot into a small glass jar at the same time, to get that “weird car” moving.

This could be showing the way to resolve the issue is for the feminine and the masculine to join or work together; to incorporate into the whole the lost part, and to take a step in the same direction, in an open and honest way in order to facilitate movement in the new necessary direction.

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Back again,

'Cinderella' has two elements that may mean something for you, and if you choose to can look into to see what you can learn about yourself.

Firstly, the story is about sibling rivalry. Always being picked on by the ugly step-sisters. They have everything, Cinderella has nothing. They get all the opportunities, Cinderella has none. Only those which she does by her own doing with the help of her fairy godmother. This could relate to how you are looking for the children in your dream. I assume you didn't see the children in the dream, you just knew you had to look for them. This could mean looking into your childhood history.

Secondly, the fairy tale is about work. Cinderella is expected to do the dirtiest work and although she performs it well, she receives no credit for it, only more is demanded of her. This may be represented by the destructive fire and the reference to work. Could the dream be a metaphore for how you feel at work, irrespective of what it is that you really do during the day. Meaning is it paid work, or unpaid work, or if you are younger school work (thanks for pointing out the age aspect Gerard).

Maybe your dream is telling you about something in your childhood that reminds you of what is happening at work, now. You were like Cinderella, back then and it is like being Cinderella, now.

The good thing about 'Cinderella' is that it has a happy ending. She finds her prince. Don't take this literally. It could be you find your bliss. The lesson is she does it herself (with a little bit of help) against all the odds of the step-mother and the ugly step-sisters. Or in the case of your dream, your feminine and masculine aspects unite. It may mean to diffuse the situation at work, use some of your masculine aspects, like rational thinking, intellect, assertiveness, doing rather than being, competing etc.

Again, I could be way off the mark. It is very important that the interpretation clicks for you. Cheers, Stephen G.

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Hi, Thank you for your responses. I should have told earlier that the dream had immediately some concrete meaning for me. Too concrete maybe. Anyway, the solution was not clear.

In the real life I feel pressured to move (out from this town) by others. That is like the arson in the dream. I feel also pressured to get certain kind of a job. Both issues are related. In real life I do want to look for a job now after many years as a housewife. I just don’t know what kind of a job. In the dream the “work” felt like it was this new job. The husband and children in the dream were my real family. In the dream they were very realistically doing what I think they do in reality. Now, to think of it, they could as well be my masculine side and inner child. So the scary message is clear: We should move, my feminine side and other people’s opinion say so, but my husband is reluctant, kids like to keep playing and don’t know how to act reasonably. In real life I don’t think that fear should be the number one reason to do anything. In the dream it was not clear either, what would save us from the fire. Maybe there were a lot of back roads. Was the fire going to spread everywhere? My biggest worry seemed to be the children. Is it anyway good to escape a fire that is started by other people? I admit that they have a good point, but things are not always so simple.

I need to read your responses again a couple of times later with more time. There was very good hints. I have thought that the dreams like to tell us more something that we do not know. Is that true?

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Hi Orchid,
Dreams are an opportunity for correction between the conscious and the unconscious. For instance if you think of something and the unconscious holds an opposing viewpoint, then a conflict occurs that generates a dream. I say an opportunity, because people have the ability to accept or not accept the solution identified in the interpretation.

Generally, dreams interpreted on a personal level are telling you something you are not aware of, that's why I mentioned the dream has to click. Like a little shock, or ah ha feeling, surprise. If you don't get this feeling then the interpretation lies somewhere else and you should continue digging.

Actually, I was with some people the other day and someone wanted their dream interpreted. When the interpretation hit the mark the dreamers' arms got goose bumps and from thenafter she had an excitable attitude to her predicament.

Maybe in your dream it is about the moving, and also about the career change - in your dream the children are not there (you don't see them), but your nurturing/protective instinct is there.

I still think 'Cinderella' is relevant. She also had a great change in her life regarding location and social status. Are you game to fight the odds so you can have an opportunity to put on the glass slipper? The choice is really up to you. Cheers, Stephen G.

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One last thing Orchid, I don't know what your attitude is to doing home duties. I have spoken with people who have thoughts of feeling like Cinderella in the home, but then they feel guilty for having such thoughts. You know, like it's my job and I have to do it... I can't think this way, it's wrong. They sometimes feel obliged to do it. If you are in this category I have just one thing to say to you. It's okay to have these thoughts. Your human. Even though it goes against everything you may have been told/taught. Stephen G.

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Hi Stephen,

It took me a while to figure out how I could be Cinderella in my life. It fits, but still in clear daylight it feels distant. I might repeat that attitude in many relationships I have. Isn't it so, that we all could be Cinderellas in a way or another. Almost everybody has felt not supported in what they want, and not appreciated in what they do, and then compared those things in how other people, like siblings, are supported and appreciated. Is it so that the dreamer is usually headtype of the story? In this case am I the Cinderella for sure, not someone else? (At least I put my foot to the glassjar.) I mean, that anybody could be it, but in this dreams it is me, because it is my dream. How about the other characters then? Do they have ending like in the story? I feel already sorry for this poor sibling staying the rest of her life with a demanding mean parent, who will be madly and sadly disappointed to her "better" child.

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Hi Orchid,
Yes, you are right. There are many people who feel like Cinderella. That is why they are generally referred to as patterns of behaviour.

As for the other characters in your dream - they are all you, or different aspects of yourself, and that is where all the guilt comes into it. Say for instance you have a thought. similar to something the wicked step-mother would do. You consciously think that you can't have that type of thought because someone told you a long time ago that it was not right to think such things. Therefore they cause conflicts within yourself.

Again, the interpretation has to click with you. If it doesn't then it is not the right one for you.

Stephen G.

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Hi Again Orchid,

I was at a workshop recently on Sibling Relationships and out of the 12 participants, 3 had the Cinderella experience in their life. They ranged in ages from late thirties to late fifties, so you can see that it has a lasting effect.

Also, when I got my dog and took her for a walk in a crowded footpath, she was playing up and I felt everyone around me was focussing on what was happening and judging. This caused me great anxiety. A few days later I had a dream that a town was on fire. Even though the cause of the fire was not relevant in the dream if everyone in the dream is you, then another meaning for arsonist could be a saboteur. Self sabotage is a difficult aspect to be conscious of and will need a bit of reflection to see if it clicks for you. Funnily enough Cinderella also sabotaged herself when she went the the ball. Cinderella knew her step-mother and step-sisters were going to be there, but she still went. Her life got worse because the step-mother found out what she had been up to and Cinderella was locked up never to be found again. But then the prince still found her. Wow, fairy tales really hold a lot about the human condition. The step-mother is like a negative mother archetype. The guilt one feels over doing something they want to do. Some more food for thought. Stephen G.

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