in this issue
Scintillations
Growing My Own Flowers
Letting Go
Embracing Inner Child
Seven
Naissance
Letters to My Younger Self
Books That Changed My Life
Almost Famous Photographers
Moody Girl
Visualize This!
Universe Spoke To Me
First Time I Had Sex
Real Dream Interpretation
Contributors

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Issue One: Change
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Real Dream Interpretation
by Juliette Sterner

A Dreamy Reader Sent Us Her Dream:
My husband drops me off at a local multi-screen theater. I'm not really sure if I want to go by myself. I don't know if I have enough money or what show I would want to see, if any. As I get closer to the window, I look for the matinee prices and can't find them listed. I wonder if it costs just five dollars. I feel paper money in my pocket and pull it out. It's a five dollar bill. I am glad. Then I wonder if there is a movie I will want to see that starts soon. I look at the newly designed marquee. It is a big 3-D plastic sign featuring colorful cups of sodas and popcorn and a few words here and there--but no movie titles or times. I am irritated by the lack of information. It's my turn at the window now. I try to joke about how ridiculous their signs are with the young woman who is cashiering, but my sarcasm is too biting. I am not hiding my anger very well. I hand her the five dollar bill and start looking for some quarters because I assume it will be around $5.50 for my ticket. I touch a quarter in the middle of my purse. It feels misshapen. It is a circle, but it has a bump on the edge of it. Before I pull it out I wonder if they will accept this strange quarter. I wonder if it has been designed especially to be used in vending machines or to be more efficient for some reason. As I continue fumbling in my purse the woman tells me it's $5.63 for the ticket. YOU CHARGE TAX NOW, TOO??!!! I start tossing coins at her -- half mad, half laughing at how ridiculous all of this is. When I know good and well that I've thrown at least 63 cents worth of coins her way, I throw the rest of my coins down on the counter, just to be obnoxious. I go inside.

They are remodeling the entire inside of the theater as well. I look for my movie title above the doorways and head in that direction. I'm confused. I walk through the lobby seeing lots of people sitting in rows. Everything is the same color and texture. All the seats, rugs, and draperies are soft and plush (all red or all blue, I can't remember which, or maybe it switches?). As I walk past all the seated people I realize that this area must be a theater also. I wonder why they have you tramp through one theater to get to another one. I really wonder about how screwed up this place is.

I continue to be confused and still cannot find the correct theater. I end up being guided by the comedian, Sinbad. He and another man escort me through a whole shopping mall (we never reach the theater, by the way). Neither of them talk to me. They want to stop in at the athletic clothing store. I am annoyed, but I don't say anything. They are both examining the merchandise. Sinbad turns out to be the District Regional Manager for an athletic shoe store. He talks to the other man about what a sweet deal he has with this company and that he only has to commute once a week from L.A.

Thank you, dear dreamer, for sending us this dream.

What struck me in your dream is that the action revolves around theatres and involves a performer, Sinbad.  You move through the dream and you're annoyed the whole time, feeling like a victim, and dealing with it all by using sarcasm.

I'll quote Shakespeare's "As You Like It" to describe my over riding impression of your dream:

All the world’s a stage,
And all the men and women merely players.
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages.

You never get to see a movie, caught up as you are in this comedy of errors.  Speaking of comedy, who is Sinbad the comedian? Dreams are notorious for doling out puns and deeply veiled references.  Did you know that Sinbad the Comedian named himself after the title character of Seven Voyages fame, paying homage to that mythical Sinbad's strength, positive attitude and survival skills?  Notice that Shakespeare refers to the seven ages (life phases) of man and that Sinbad the Sailor endured seven life trials on his way to wealth and recognition. 

Hmmmm, mystical number, that seven.  Genesis tells of the world being made in seven days.  What about the seven chakras?  The seven deadly sins?  Hmm, I'm wondering if there are seven theatres at the multiplex you dreamed of.

And speaking of powerfully mystical numbers, how is it that you have to pay thirteen cents tax?  What percentage of $5.50 is that?  Two and three tenths, actually, but I really don't see what THAT has to do with anything!  OK, maybe I'm digging too deeply.  So be it.  But these are YOUR numbers to look at as you will. 

Ok, let's look at the development of your feelings in the dream.  You start out being dropped off someplace you're not prepared to be, not even sure you want to be there alone. Why is it that you don't ever come out and ask what movies are showing?  Would you rather feel irritated than ask for help? 

You make an angry joke to the cashier, at the same time feeling like you ought to hide your anger.  Will she accept your strange quarter?  Why do you throw coins at the cashier just to be obnoxious?  What are you really angry about?  Do the circumstances in the dream warrant the extent of your hostility?  Or does this all start in the beginning? 

You're not sure you want to do this alone, and then you go on to have a very lonely experience throughout the dream.  You're not seen or heard.  The only time your presence is acknowledged is when you are taxed.  You are forced to walk alone through a monotone waiting area (one of the seven phases of life?) observing people sitting in rows.  You wonder how screwed up this place is.

So, what is real in life, dear dreamer?  What is real in YOUR life?  How is life a performance?  How is your life like either Sinbad's?  His, their, appearance in your dream looks to me to be very good news.  Sinbad the comedian is well loved for his ability to entertain.  And Sinbad the Sailor relates his tales of triumph over extreme hardship.  By the way, he tells the stories of his seven voyages to yet another Sinbad, Sinbad the Porter, a traveler who has come upon Sinbad the Sailor's sumptuous garden and wonders why he is not as fortunate. 

Sinbad the Sailor invites Sinbad the Porter to hear how he came to have such riches.  He does this over seven days, giving Sinbad the Porter three gold coins after every tale.  Sinbad the Sailor tells of having to prove his identity more than once.  At the end, Sinbad the Porter apologizes for his envy, understanding how much Sinbad the Sailor has gone through to achieve his wealth.  Sinbad the Sailor invites Sinbad the Porter to live with him forever, which he happily accepts.  A nice metaphor for integrating opposite selves, don't you think?

And you, dreamer, is there some integration of your fearful, alone self and your angry invisible self that is wanting to happen?