The Moonflower Vine

Everybody dreams.

But not everybody pays attention. Simply paying attention to dreams starts the ball rolling and our lives are immeasurably enriched. Partnering with dreams in our daily work helps us figure out what those cryptic pictures are trying to tell us and we learn the language--and I don't mean the standard, one-size-fits-all interpretations. A few universal symbols may be tossed into the mix, but most of the metaphorical language comes from our own frame-of-reference.

When I started logging dreams 20+ years ago, I was just an average, unaware dreamer. But when a compelling dream caught my attention, I started changing the way I thought about them. After writing down the details of that dream, I filed it away and forgot about it, but a curiosity was born. I began thinking about dreams as soon as I hit the pillow and when I remembered one, I would record it in a journal. Noticing patterns develop, I was hooked. Besides, why waste the work accomplished in sleep?

Having developed competence in studying my own dreams, I wanted to show others, by my anecdotal stories, that they could do the same thing. In the 20+ years it took to realize the fruits of my labor, I was entertained and helped by a succession of illuminating dreams. Creating volumes of notes in a journal, I saw patterns develop. All dreams helped me in some way and over time, I even discovered prophecies. I wanted to share this with everyone and show the powerful ally that resided within easy reach--the ability to dream--then to learn from them.

From volumes of notes, then, I refined and distilled until an essence emerged. Precognitive or prophetic dreams took a lot longer than others to reach conclusion. They took anywhere from ten months to fifteen years. Then, no matter what I did, clues, clearly metaphorical or overwhelmingly obtuse, found their way in the dark. Sometimes messages portended danger and there was even advance warning--when I could figure it out. Then there was denial. Sometimes I wasn't ready for what was communicated. Denying important messages never worked because the dreams just kept coming back--couched in a new context--tough to ignore.

Besides the insights derived from regular "conscious-raising" dreams, I experienced emotional healing when I received an intuitive message in a dream from my mother ("Taking a Different Bus Home"), who had passed on many months before. Prophetic or pre-cognitive dreams helped prepare me for losses ("Stoking the Fire" and "A-1, Babe") and then a desired change in employment ("A Day at the Orifice").