Nightmares, Reality and Gifts

Someone recently asked me how my dreams are going.  I replied that I live in a mixture of good and bad.  He asked how to make more good dreams.  Struck by that question, I realized that the idea of "good and bad" is itself a distraction.  If you're dreaming, you're connected to the deeper truths of your life, the 'chips' that are running your psyche, whether you know it or not.  Dreams are evidence of inner truths that are difficult to name or access consciously.  Nightmares are a dramatic way dream gets your attention.  It's a red flag, a warning, a signal to put on your nighttime glasses to see some truth in the daytime that's gone underground.

What is truth or reality have been lifelong questions. So have nightmares.  As a child of Holocaust survivors, reality was always split in two.  One for America, one for the camps, death and survival.  I think most children experience a split in their homes, although maybe not as extreme.  It was confusing, but as I grew into adolescence, I became practiced at keeping uncomfortable truths to myself and living in two worlds.  Paradoxically, when inner and outer worlds are too far apart, the bridge-span between them is too wide and collapses.  Inner 'reality' gets confused with outer reality and vice versa.  Nightmares reflect that daytime reversal.  Nightmares are a warning system that something is out of whack and needs attention.  That's one of the reasons I'm so committed to working with dreams for myself and others.  They show the true face of the heart, when it's hard to see it in the mirror.   

So, the next time you have a nightmare, wrap yourself in a blanket of love and know that the very presence of the nightmare is a gift and a sign that you are loved. Ask yourself what is going on that you might be missing?  What truth is hard to face in the light of day?  If it's too hard to hold alone, take yourself to an individual or circle that holds dream sacred. There is a message from the Divine inside it, just for you.