"I am looking out of the living room window... it's dark outside. I see an airplane plummeting nose down towards the building across the street (this building appears to be a flour mill a few stories high). The airplane is black. I can't believe what I am seeing! It crashes into the building and there is a tremendous explosion followed by thick plumes of grey smoke and fire. I see the black airplane in the midst of the flames. The building is burning and people are starting to arrive to battle the blaze. I feel panicked. I try to call my partner on the phone. I need to let him know what is happening."
Wow, what a dream! I awake feeling startled and frightened.
I am sharing this dream with you to illustrate how emotion is at the core of the language in dreams. Before falling asleep I had been very troubled about something important in my life, and wondering if I was heading for a crisis (a crash and burn). I could feel myself spiraling downwards into a depressed state... the image of the black plane plummeting downwards and the explosion a perfect image and mirror for this. The intensity of the image shows how fearful I was.
The plane crashes into a mill. I think about the process of grinding and separating that takes place in the making of flour... a place of transformation? These life struggles we go through can be 'grist for the mill' - made useful... we sometimes describe our hardships as 'going through the mill'.
I am sharing this dream with you to illustrate how emotion is at the core of the language in dreams. Before falling asleep I had been very troubled about something important in my life, and wondering if I was heading for a crisis (a crash and burn). I could feel myself spiraling downwards into a depressed state... the image of the black plane plummeting downwards and the explosion a perfect image and mirror for this. The intensity of the image shows how fearful I was.
The plane crashes into a mill. I think about the process of grinding and separating that takes place in the making of flour... a place of transformation? These life struggles we go through can be 'grist for the mill' - made useful... we sometimes describe our hardships as 'going through the mill'.
Jungian dream work tells us to look at the end of the dream and ask ourselves where the energy is leading. People arrive to deal with the fire - there is help! Yet I am in a panic and I realize I must let my partner know what is happening i.e. how I am feeling. The dream is telling me I don't need to go through this alone.
A dream such as this could leave one feeling very anxious. Working with this dream and understanding the metaphorical language showed me the import of my feelings and more importantly gave me some direction as to how to deal with them. Following the dream's guidance, I did 'contact' my partner and was met with empathy and support. I could greet the next day feeling stronger and not so much in the grip of my emotions.
Dream work works!
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