Dear
SMYD,
My wife
and I have always said we can talk about anything, but we were challenged recently
when we visited a financial planner for the first time. Right out of the gate he said we needed to
prepare a last will and testament! We
felt pretty uncomfortable, but we started working on it. Naturally, that chore quickly triggered a discussion
about who would die first! Yet another
difficult conversation for us! It was
also hard to start talking about who would get what among our kids.
In the
middle of all this I dreamed that I was dressed in preppy clothes and driving my
favorite old car, a classic Cadillac. A
car like that never goes out of style!
My wife was with me and she was wearing what she calls her classic
outfit, a little black dress.
Suddenly
the car just quit running. I tried to
start it while it was still in ‘drive’ and for some reason it worked. We drove across a large green lawn toward a
street on the other side. Suddenly, the
car stopped again. Then, just as
suddenly, we were out of the car and in front of it. We had just kept going, just traveled along,
even though the car had stopped. We
stood there feeling a little confused for a moment. We looked at the car and our surroundings. Then we turned toward the street ahead and
started going in that direction.
I woke up
feeling relieved somehow. I just can’t
figure out why I was relieved!
Signed,
Driving
My Classic Car
Dear Classic,
It’s only
natural for us to begin to feel anxious when we’re assigned the task of
planning for a world we’ll be leaving behind.
Your dream seems to offer some insights into the thoughts and
discussions you’re having with your wife and family, and your worries about the
unknown.
First consider
the Cadillac; a car you say will never go out of style. Couple it with your preppy clothes and your
wife’s little black dress. All these
images serve as metaphors in your dream, casting you and your wife as “classics,”
never to fade into disuse or antiquity.
You both are timeless, just like your Caddy, your traditional prep-school
clothes and her favorite frock.
Next,
when the car quits running, you and she go on.
What a lovely metaphor this is for life after the will kicks in! Your ‘vehicle’ quits, but you keep
going. The two of you experience a
momentary pause in front of the car. You
assess your new circumstances, then turn and move onto the next avenue, the
street ahead.
Now I’m
not sure what your beliefs are, but if the discussion of your last will and
testament made you uncomfortable, your dream arrives with reassurance that any
transition in your future will be almost seamless. Not to worry Dear Dreamer! Like all lasting things in life, you and your
wife will never go out of style!
Sweet
Dreams to You!
SMYD
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