Dream Interpretation - You can FLY!

Flying dreams exemplify perhaps the most exhilarating of all dreaming experiences.  Those who’ve had them never forget them.  The good news is that there are steps we can take to initiate flying dreams.

Dear SMYD,

I dreamed I was flying!  It was the greatest feeling ever!  I could swoop high and low and I did!  It was the most amazing feeling!  I went over the Atlantic Ocean and to Africa, a place I’ve always wanted to visit.  At first I flew with my arms stretched out by my sides and the wind in my face.  But when I was over Africa, I was sitting in a swing that didn’t seem to be attached to anything.  I just swept over the plains and all the animals turned to look up at me.  I saw giraffes and lions, rhinos and just about every exotic animal you could ever want to see.

I felt so free and ecstatic.  I woke up feeling that way and it stayed with me for a long time that day.  It would be great to feel that way again!

What does a flying dream mean and is there a way I can have one again?

Signed,

Free Flyer

Dear Free Flyer,

Lucky you!  You’ve had one of the most sought-after dream experiences of all.  Virtually everyone who reports dreams of flying reports the elation that you felt. 

There is no set meaning for dreams of flying (or any other dream), but some general interpretations can be applied depending on your circumstances.  Many dreams of flying represent the dreamer’s sense of joy, freedom and competence:  “I am free!”  “I have no restrictions or limitations!”  “I am full of joy!”

Because your dream takes you to Africa, a place you’ve always wanted to go, it suggests that you have reached a place in your life where you can extend yourself and reach for goals you may have postponed.

To prompt a flying dream takes time and practice, but it can be done.  It involves the practice of reality checks.  During your day, pause occasionally to take special note of your surroundings and activities.  Then ask yourself if you’re dreaming.  How do you know if you are or are not?  Such prompting will be followed, eventually, by similar questions during your dream state.  When the answer is ‘yes, I am dreaming,’ you have reached a lucid dream state (in your dream, you know you are dreaming).  From there you can begin your efforts to lift off! 

Stephen LaBerge of Stanford University founded the Lucidity Institute.  His website, http://www.lucidity.com/, offers detailed instructions as to the most productive ways to proceed in inducing the dream you want, including those mentioned above as well as tips for ‘getting off the ground.’  Many beginners will jump or bounce to get comfortable with the new sensations.  Some take off with arms extended like Superman!  That is how you feel when you achieve a lucid state and fly in your dreams!

Sweet Dreams to You, Dear Dreamer!

Are You Flying in Your Dreams?

Dearest Dreamers,

If you take the time to understand them, you can’t help benefitting from the insights your dreams offer you.  So closely tied to our waking lives, and operating from a perspective neutral to our daily turmoil, dreams provide insights into our personalities and the paths we travel through life.  If we learn the beautiful, metaphorical language of dreams, we soon know ourselves and are more able to be true to ourselves.  Here is a case in point:

You may recognize the name of Amy Tan, an Oakland native, and bestselling author of The Joy Luck Club and The Kitchen God’s Wife.

In an interview published in Writers Dreaming by Naomi Epel, Ms. Tan speaks about the value of her dreams in her life:

“Fifteen years ago I realized how important dreams were in my life.  They weren’t just flotsam and jetsam, I could actually change the way that I felt about myself through dreams.”  She goes on to relate that her most significant dreams came to her shortly after her friend Pete died.  She tells of a vivid and emotional dream experience:

“One night I entered into a dream and Pete was there.  He said, ‘I want to take you to this place where I live…’  It was a wonderful idyllic setting with a lot of creatures flying around:  elephants, camels, people.  I said, ‘I’d like to try flying myself.’

“Pete said, ‘Sure, but since you’re not dead, you have to go over to that booth there and rent some wings.  They’re only a quarter.’

“I went and rented the wings.  I took off, and I was flying around with all the other people, having a wonderful time.  All of a sudden, I realized, ‘This is ridiculous.  How can I fly with these twenty-five-cent wings?’ 

“Immediately I started to fall.  I was terrified I was going to die.  Then I thought, ‘Wait a minute, I was just flying a minute ago,’ and I started flying again.  I went back and forth with this – falling and flying, falling and flying – until it finally dawned on me what this was about.  I said to myself:  ‘It is not these wings that enable you to fly, it’s your own confidence.’”

Ms. Tan then shared the epiphany her dream brought to her:  “I realized there were many things in my life that I was not allowing myself to do because I lacked the confidence.  I needed the props.  I could see all the props I’d been using, and they were just like those twenty-five-cent wings.  I could see how ridiculous it was.

“Even though it was a dream, I felt it on a gut level of experience – the fear of failing, falling, and the elation of flying…Without the dream, it probably would have taken me much longer to come to such a simple realization about myself.”

Don’t discount the power of your dreams to be transformative in your life!

Sweet Dreams to You, Dear Dreamers!

SMYD

sendmeyourdreams@mail.com

Are You Flying in Your Dreams?

Dearest Dreamers,

If you take the time to understand them, you can’t help benefitting from the insights your dreams offer you.  So closely tied to our waking lives, and operating from a perspective neutral to our daily turmoil, dreams provide insights into our personalities and the paths we travel through life.  If we learn the beautiful, metaphorical language of dreams, we soon know ourselves and are more able to be true to ourselves.  Here is a case in point:

You may recognize the name of Amy Tan, an Oakland native, and bestselling author of The Joy Luck Club and The Kitchen God’s Wife.

In an interview published in Writers Dreaming by Naomi Epel, Ms. Tan speaks about the value of her dreams in her life:

“Fifteen years ago I realized how important dreams were in my life.  They weren’t just flotsam and jetsam, I could actually change the way that I felt about myself through dreams.”  She goes on to relate that her most significant dreams came to her shortly after her friend Pete died.  She tells of a vivid and emotional dream experience:

“One night I entered into a dream and Pete was there.  He said, ‘I want to take you to this place where I live…’  It was a wonderful idyllic setting with a lot of creatures flying around:  elephants, camels, people.  I said, ‘I’d like to try flying myself.’

“Pete said, ‘Sure, but since you’re not dead, you have to go over to that booth there and rent some wings.  They’re only a quarter.’

“I went and rented the wings.  I took off, and I was flying around with all the other people, having a wonderful time.  All of a sudden, I realized, ‘This is ridiculous.  How can I fly with these twenty-five-cent wings?’ 

“Immediately I started to fall.  I was terrified I was going to die.  Then I thought, ‘Wait a minute, I was just flying a minute ago,’ and I started flying again.  I went back and forth with this – falling and flying, falling and flying – until it finally dawned on me what this was about.  I said to myself:  ‘It is not these wings that enable you to fly, it’s your own confidence.’”

Ms. Tan then shared the epiphany her dream brought to her:  “I realized there were many things in my life that I was not allowing myself to do because I lacked the confidence.  I needed the props.  I could see all the props I’d been using, and they were just like those twenty-five-cent wings.  I could see how ridiculous it was.

“Even though it was a dream, I felt it on a gut level of experience – the fear of failing, falling, and the elation of flying…Without the dream, it probably would have taken me much longer to come to such a simple realization about myself.”

Don’t discount the power of your dreams to be transformative in your life!

Sweet Dreams to You, Dear Dreamers!

SMYD

sendmeyourdreams@mail.com