villagewisdom

So sorry to hear this kind of pain coming out of you. I've sent you a PM with encouragement and I offer conversation if you need it. One other thing I will share. When I was about 12 I had a really profound experience that is similar to what you wrote about. It has been a deep part of my life ever since. I had a "gentle" religious upbringing. There was a lot of talk about the love of Jesus for his fellow man and very little hell-fire and damnation. I was in 5th or 6th grade when I began to learn more about science and the universe. I learned about molecules -- protons, electrons, neutrons. I learned about the space between the nucleus and the electrons and how vast it was. I also learned about outer space -- the solar system and Milky Way galaxy and how small it is in the realm of all galaxies and just how mind bogglingly huge the universe is. There is far more space than matter. That space is both inside of us at the molecular level and outside of us in space. Then add social studies to the science and religion. There are millions of people all over the world. God is watching all of them at all times. So at 12 years old I was walking outside on a beautiful sunny day and contemplating how this could be when I had a profound experience that is similar to what you wrote about. All of a sudden it became completely clear to me in an instant that the only way that "god" could be everywhere at all times was that "god" was the space between the molecules and the space between the planets and the space between the solar systems, and galaxies and so on. So "god" is in me, around me, and ultimately is me. It's a beautiful thing. I remember this often when times get tough. Do you have a similar experience?

That kind of information becomes really useful when you can identify the surrounding circumstances when you are observing, when you are someone else (and who is that someone else? what are their qualities?) and when you are yourself. The dream can reflect back to you how you lived while awake. There is much more to the dreams than you have put in the post so I can't say much more about what it means. I am seconding neeel's comment and illustration that the dreams reflect how you are characterizing your life during the day. For instance, even though you may not see yourself as acting as a different person in real life, you actually do it all the time. When you come in contact with someone and you are talking, it is easy to slip into one of your "meco" personalities. So that is where it becomes important to know who you were in the dream, what triggered the switch, what else was going on in the dream. Was it something you wanted and therefore wish to continue, or is it one of those places where you are looking to improve or change. Each dream is a whole story and each one is unique to what you are currently experiencing with hours or days of having the dream. Also, Matt D, who is a member here, is hosting skype sessions where we talk about dreams. That post is here. There is a dream group on Facebook here. We are just getting started but would like to see the group grow. Please check it out.

Yes, we want them to stop hitting their children. But arguing about whether it is rational or not can obfuscate the learning that the child is reaching for in the described circumstance. What I mean is that this parent is trying to teach his child that drawing on the walls is an improper medium for that activity -- in this circumstance. Hitting a child or even sending them to their room does nothing to teach them about proper use of materials, what a mural is, other forms of art and how and where they are done. It does nothing to teach them the real consequences of writing on the walls. The clean up. The extra effort required to bring the space back to normality. Paper can be purchased and replaced. Walls have to be cleaned or painted. There are many opportunities for actually teaching the child something about how the world functions. None of them require punishment of any kind. That is peaceful parenting. It is light years beyond simply not hitting children. What are you trying to teach the child? What is the child stretching to learn? Work with them. Listen to them. Instruct them and see what they do with the instruction and make your choices from there. Simply teaching them to obey does nothing toward teaching them to be an adult -- except to obey and insist on having their way. Peaceful parenting is so much more than not hitting. It is no punishment of any kind. It is realizing that what a child does is not wrong -- ever. It is a choice they made. Peaceful parenting is making the effort to find out what they are trying to learn and assisting them with that learning. Arguing or making rational arguments pits him against you in a battle and there is nothing to say that he cares one whit about being rational. It's a fight and he only cares about winning. Present an alternative to him and the punishment will automatically end. All you need to do is make the alternative win-win argument. And the winning side for you is preparing yourself for dealing with these situations with your own children.

This is so funny. I was thinking about this same call this morning. I also had thoughts on alternative business structure and marketing so I'll add them here. Offering consulting services is an excellent way to leverage the current landscaping business structure rather than competing with it. You can ease into it on your own schedule and there is very little overhead. Create a portfolio and attractive presentation package of what you can do. Pictures of your landscaping and perhaps stuff you have done free gratis for friends. Make arrangements with local landscape businesses for referrals in exchange for using their plants. Teach classes in upkeep and maintenance at their location to bring in business for both of you. Offer maintenance and/or troubleshooting services for those who have used your design and implementation service. Build a reputation over time. Put that business plan down on paper. Perhaps by the time the baby is 5 or 6 it will be time to make the big leap and let go of working for someone else. Just my thoughts on it.

Hi. Pantheist here. Very vocal peaceful parent advocate. Started my own podcast through Stef's inspirational example. There are many, many other good things in this forum and so I would not let atheism get in the way of participating. Love the community here.

There is no nutritional substitute for mother's milk -- or the accompanying love, comfort and connection. There is absolutely nothing more nutritious in every way. I'm glad you are listening to her. So sad that the mother is teaching her child that having a good time is not acceptable behavior and that the only thing that matters is what she, the mother, wants. As you are likely aware, there are other ways to approach it besides my way or no way. I understand dropping the conversation. If you continue to hammer a point when there are no ears to hear, the message gets lost in the argument. There are some that will hear and understand if you just make your statement and let it drop. Also, good to hear that your family supports you.

I agree that the intolerance is there. But I also see that the producers portrayed the atheist as a professionally successful and loving man. In fact, the young christian man was portrayed as a hypocrite as he was talking about drinking and driving, and two other legal infractions and praying that he was not stopped by the cops. That's not very "christian" and came across as hypocritical for those with eyes to see. Clearly less desirable as a partner for anyone really looking for a successful life partnership. Just because the woman didn't believe that he could really love her without loving god does not change the fact that the acting showed him to be loving. I don't know how to describe this better, but I can tell when a man is just saying shit and when he is sincere. Hypocrites are not that hard to spot. It has nothing to do with whether someone loves god or not. When you combine professionally successful with the courage (in the face of having already had this conversation with his own family) to be brutally honesty in that situation, the apology, the expression of emotion and love, it all adds up to I would choose him over the other loser in a heartbeat. The script also showed that the religious father was willing to discuss the issue of his daughter's happiness regardless of who she chose as a partner. He was relieved that he did not have to deal with it, but the relief clearly showed he was willing to entertain the idea that his daughter might really be happy with this guy and he might have to adjust to that. (Has anyone seen Fiddler on the Roof? Similar theme.) Overall, I think the message is positive and in the right direction. The symbolism of the christian women being very shallow was of more concern to me. People laugh because it is a comedy. But lots of children watching it will see that they might just want to be more like the (ex) boyfriend if they are male. The young woman clearly made a poor choice in my opinion and may end up like the other women if she feels that is what is expected. There was no positive role model for the woman.

I don't know about right or wrong. You did what you did. You wrote what you thought. I believe that is the purpose of "comments" on Facebook. The persons responding to your comment claim to be providing a healthy diet for the child. I submit that they are clearly not providing a healthy diet as they are not responding to the child's desire to eat more after dinner -- which is his stated preference. Perhaps he is craving comfort. Perhaps he really is hungry. Perhaps he is bored. They are clearly misinformed about what eating healthy really means and their child will suffer for it. IMO Here are my thoughts on the child sleeping in the chair and the comments regarding the health of the child's diet and the requests for food after dinner. In addition to the fact that they are not finding out why the child wants to eat when he does, clearly they do not understand that the child's body (and their's as well for that matter) are much smarter about what it needs, and when, than any parent will ever be. This is a current misunderstanding that is rampant in our society. We have diet "religion" everywhere. Eat this. Don't eat that. You're going to die if you eat this. You're going to get fat if you eat after X o'clock. This causes cancer and that causes diabetes and heart disease. Basically you (or your body) will be punished in some way for not obeying whatever the current "10 commandments" of food consumption happen to be. Making a child eat when they are clearly not hungry is just a manifestation of the same control technique used on the parent being passed on to the child. Making them eat certain things at certain times is also a control technique. It makes it very convenient for the parents when the children are on a schedule. However, it provides them no information about who their child is and what his needs might be regarding nourishment, be it mental, emotional or physical. We have segmented our lives into 3 square meals a day, or whatever the current USDA recommendation is that is supposed to be equivalent to a healthy diet. The current propaganda is the "food pyramid". Sorry, but the elephant in the room is that the USDA has decided what is best for everyone's body and has infiltrated every home via "Leave It To Beaver" and the like. There is no scientific proof that any diet or time of day is more beneficial than another. The recommended daily allowance of this or that, the recommended number of times to eat per day, the recommended kinds of food to eat and the recommended portions have become religious doctrine in the diet and health industry. Lots of money is being made from these supposed truths. Whatever someone else says is best is what we must have, or be punished by ill health and weight gain or lack of weight gain, or lack of muscle mass or whatever other bad thing that can happen to your body. The truth that I have determined with how my body works is that sometimes it needs more food and sometimes less. Sometimes it needs and wants food at one time and sometimes at a different time. Sometimes it wants one food and sometimes another. Sometimes it wants just one food and not a protein, starch and 2 vegetables. While I see the value of having a family meal as a tradition for getting together and having good conversation, the religious fervor surrounding what I eat, how much and when is clearly unhealthy for me and I argue for a large portion of the population. I no longer know what to eat or when. I simply eat whatever is put in front of me including what I put there myself. I eat for emotional reasons. I eat because I am bored. I eat because someone else expects me to eat what they have prepared. I have this nagging thought that I must eat breakfast. I have this nagging thought that I must eat lunch. And I have this nagging thought that I must eat dinner -- whether I am hungry at the time or not. And since I must eat everything on my plate, even if I am not hungry, I clearly overeat because of early childhood training and shaming. I've made huge progress over the last few months but still have a ways to go. Was I abused as a child? I don't know what to say about that. My mother read everything and listened to what the "experts" said. She was told that all of her children had to eat three times a day and certain times and certain amounts. She did her best to follow that doctrine of food religion. My prediction is that the child will grow up with an eating disorder just like the rest of humanity that has forgotten to listen to and respond to actual needs as opposed to needs that have been programmed into them.

The problem with learning on your own is you don't really know if you get off track. Unfortunately, many of the "guides" are off track also IMO. I've never paid for an individual guide. Earlier in my life I studied and practiced different types for many years within organizations that taught their spiritual bent along with it. I can't really recommend that at all. While it was very useful for me, I was misguided for much of the time. And when I finally "woke up", I found that I was "enlightened" and they were still searching for something and were still all "woo woo" and not really getting it. I don't actually spend a lot of time with practice anymore. Sometimes I do practice but mostly I just "play the instrument and keep it tuned up". I found out there is no place of enlightenment to get to with meditation. That's a false god. I think it's tough to try and do it on your own. A lot of times you feel like you are just sitting there and nothing is happening. And that's the problem. Because you think something is supposed to be happening, you miss that it is okay for nothing to happen. My recommendation is to learn the basics and give it a go and give it some time. Like learning how to play an instrument. You learn the notes and you learn how to read the music. Then you practice scales and other exercises depending on the instrument you are trying to master. You might practice tones in a wind instrument or strumming and fingering techniques on a guitar or piano. It doesn't really matter what the method is or the instrument. The real pay off is learning to play the music with some skill. In the area of meditation, it means you can practice sitting quietly and watching your breath, or sounding a tone, or watching nature, or walking and trying to listen to everything at once. Whatever method you choose, it will bring you a greater understanding of what is important to you. You will find out what part of your personality you are attached to and what sort of repetitive thoughts trip you up in moving toward your goals. You will find out what is beautiful in your life if you look for it and you will be caught up in the negative aspects if that is what you focus on. The skill you will gain is the ability to choose in any given moment. Pick a method and stick with it for quite a while. For instance, toning or watching your breathing. Choose one and get really good at it. Back to the playing an instrument metaphor, you can't get really good playing the flute if you only play it for a year and then switch to piano. On the other hand, you can play clarinet for a while and easily switch to the flute. And with a little more skill, you can switch to piano or guitar -- but there is kind of a starting over period to get your fingers trained. And so it is with meditation. Learn one way and get good at it. Then you can learn other ways. And the more similar the method, the easier the transition to the new "instrument". You will likely find that you like one method better than all others. However, you will always be able to play any of the mind methods you have chosen. And one last thought. It really is about learning how to play the music. There is no end all enlightenment, peace and happiness. There is no ultimate goal or place in awareness that you have to get or attain. You simply learn to play your mind instrument -- you learn it inside and out, backwards and forwards -- and you play. Sometimes it is hard work to play the same scale over and over -- or some thought or behavior you are trying to develop seems as if it will always be awkward. And then the next thing you know, you are out there and a situation comes up and you just dance right through it in peace because you have practiced the steps. I think I switched metaphors there. But dancing is the same. There is no end goal that you are trying to reach. You are simply doing the movements and enjoying the activity. Same-same with music and meditation. Well I really went off there didn't I? Hope that wasn't too "woo woo" and l'll answer any questions you have. Feel free to PM me.

One more thought. To answer your question in the title, it would depend on what the "mainstream" does with what they find their "mind(s)full" of. My prediction would be that they would write some "feel good" stories and avoid anything that was uncomfortable. You know. The things they really need to be mindful of . . . like the murder of innocent people in perpetual war and the stealing of money from the "public" and the associated threat of incarceration or death. Or maybe they might have to cover up their dysfunctional treatment of their children. I predict it will end up being lots of "woo woo" and little evolution of the species.

Not in my experience. The most effective way to prepare for a meeting is to set aside a time to do it exclusively, without distraction. This action is a type of meditation or visualization where I play out the meeting in my mind and look for places to become more prepared for the possibilities, opportunities, actions, etc that might arise in the meeting. Also, the way you phrased your statement above, your mind would be in control of your choices. Your mind would be separate from the "you" that decides what you will do with your life. Very often it seems to be the case. However, if you have free will (and of course that is still up for debate) and make your own choices, would you not also choose where to direct your thoughts in any given moment? In other words, the mind would never really decide what is best for you. Or would it . . . ?

"It's a practice called "mindfulness" and it basically means being aware of your thoughts, physical sensations, and surroundings." The above quote is from near the top of the article, 2nd paragraph I believe. I'm not sure what you are referring to here in your post where you state "I worry meditation and the other things they talk about are encouraging dissociating from your thoughts and feelings". I don't know where you are getting that idea as it is directly opposite to the definition presented. It may be a mistake to believe that meditation and mindfulness are dissociating in any way. Perhaps you are thinking of the multitudes of new age groupies that are irresponsible and perhaps somewhat "flaky" people who claim to be meditating and often dissociate. I'm generalizing there. It does not actually follow that meditation is the cause of their dissociation. If they were actually practicing meditation and "mindfulness" as described above, they would be, by definition, aware of their thoughts, physical sensations (feelings) and surroundings and therefore would not be "dissociated". The tool is not the cause -- though it can certainly lead the way. My experience with being around lots of "new agers" is that the meditation or mindfulness actually brings that shit up in their face and they dissociate because they don't have a support system to face what they really think and feel. They need mediators / therapists as facilitators to get them through it. Otherwise it is just too scary to face alone. And since there are so many of them, they create their own false support group. But they are really just supporting each others' dysfunction. I'm not sure if that makes any sense. I think what I'm trying to say is that the "mindfulness" is not the problem. It is the lack of support for what "mindfulness" brings up. It often creates a huge co-dependent group.

I've learned some of Krishnamurti's ideas via the Theosophical Society stuff which is far too religious and preachy for me. But I just looked him up on Wiki and am now intrigued to understand his work in more depth. It seems he broke with Theosophy due to the same issue I just stated. Any recommendations?

I just listened to FDR 802. Is the topic of science being the religion of the atheist and the scientific method is the 10 commandments discussed anywhere in this forum?

I'm listening to lots of You Tube stuff on him now. It's very interesting and dare I say enlightening to me. Are there any Stef podcasts addressing his thoughts on Alan Watts? I'm hearing a lot of history of eastern philosophy in Watts' work and since Stef's background is history of philosophy I was wondering if he studied any of this stuff and what he thought. Can anyone point to podcasts discussing this?

Thanks. Not sure why this took so long to get to my inbox. Anyway, I'm listening to a You Tube channel called Alan Watts Philosophy and have purchased the book. Thanks again.

I'm not sure how this is different from the current bronze, silver, gold, philosopher king levels of donations. You get additional and different stuff depending on your level of contribution and it is clearly displayed at what level, if any, that you donate. And I chime in with Daniel and MMX, I am not motivated by these things. They are nice and i sometimes wonder what the philosopher king files contain, but I donate at the level I choose based on what I consume and the state of my finances. The content is the reward.

Thank you for saying this. Your clarity on the issue with this thread is really helpful. To me it felt like rampant rhetoric in support of immorality and it was bugging me more than I like to admit. Now I see that it was rubbing up against my own morals and I was not acting on that feeling. It brings to light the need I have to overcome my own fear of ostracism. That fear held me back. And that in turn tells me I'm not strong enough in awareness of my own morals. Without that strength of self-knowledge, I can still be overrun in a free society by immorality. Not a pleasant thought. So thanks for the example of truly living a moral life and acting on it appropriately.

Perhaps you are right about the condescension. I am aware that it is a failing of mine that surfaces from time to time. Though even in retrospect, it is still hard for me to understand why you would ask that question given your participation on this site and your obvious level of education. But I'm always up for learning and will change to asking a question. What moral stance are you referring to? According to UPB, stealing is immoral. It's universal and applies to all circumstances at all times. Refusing to pay a debt is stealing. Therefore, I can see no courage in your proposed action, and in fact I see cowardice. I see trying to get your way by bullying the bullies. I see an attempt to avoid personal responsibility. And again, I am at the point of only being able to see that as immature behavior. IMO a more productive course of action would be to use your time and money to educate others before they get into the same mess you did. That would indicate maturity to me. Damn. Did I just go down that condescension road again? It appears that I have a personal issue I need to contemplate at this point. It's an unending journey.

Valid contract or not, whatever. If you qualify for getting back some of the money they stole from you via tax refund, they will take it for the loan balance. If you don't earn for a while they will create a tax lien. Then if you buy anything with a title or that is registered as personal property for tax theft purposes, they will take it from you. You will never be able to own anything once you have a federal tax lien attached to you. You will not own a house or car. You may pay cash for the property but you are wasting your money because they will send people to pick it up and haul it away. The accrued interest and penalties will be more than the amount borrowed in a couple of years. Then they will add interest and penalties on that balance of loan, interest and penalties so it grows exponentially. A student loan does not clear on a bankruptcy. You can stomp your feet and pitch a fit and refuse to play nicely with the thugs. But it won't change the fact that you walked into the prison by your own choices and they will make you pay. For the rest of your life if need be, they will make you pay. Not my experience but the experience of people I know. Just sayin .....

Please consider that taking more responsibility might also mean that you have always had the opportunity for self reflection and it is not now, nor has it even been, restricted to certain times of the week. If I understand therapy correctly, the sessions with your therapist are not where the real work takes place. In general, the tone of your post here sometimes is one of wanting to place responsibility on the therapist for your success or failure. After many years of working on myself, it is still a major hindrance for me at times when I find my thoughts hovering around wanting someone else to make choices for me. Sometimes I want someone else to give me all the answers. I want someone else to tell me who I am so I can be that. I want someone else to make it right for me. I always find later that it is a futile quest. The question is not whether the therapist is up to the task. The question is whether you are up to the task. It is now and forever will be your choice. The fear of vulnerability is worth exploring with your therapist IMO.

My response is always the same in this case. "What if there were another way?" and that's it. I just release it like letting a bird loose to the sky. Questions have the potential of opening their mind. And I have found that this particular question, once asked, does not go away. It sits inside and continually replays itself. It is not an easy question to dismiss. The natural curiosity of the mind will work it and work it and work it. I have found that I don't have to convince the bird to fly. It does that quite naturally once I let it go. If you actually get a response about what the other way might be, I would leave it to your discretion about whether to respond or not. My responses are usually links to authors on the topic rather than to pursue additional argument. When I re-engage in the argument, the irrationality surfaces again. I find it much more beneficial for them, and for myself, to let them investigate on their own. I just want to offer them the chance to open their mind to the possibility and get the information out there for them to pursue as they see fit. I have also found that I can use this effectively on myself for getting past blocks in my thinking. I just ask myself that question and let it go. Sometimes I can hear it playing over and over in my mind. "Another way" will eventually surface. The mind is a great thing and can solve many problems when given the chance.

I have Calibre. It works great and will even convert pdf (with some work) to ereader page flow. How do I get the .mobi files?

How serendipitous is this? I have an interest in pantheism and just came across his work yesterday and was intrigued. So I'll be looking into his "philosophy" more. Any recommendations on where to begin?

The overall sense that I get of the dream is a graphic description of how you approach tasks or goals in your life. There is a great deal of detail here that I cannot fill in as it relates to how you perceive things. There is some great perspective from luxfelix that I had not thought of but will add in now as I go through the dream again. There is just so much detail there and I want to say what a great job you did with that. You have the potential to really use your dreams for self-knowledge and making changes and adjustments in how you are living. I also will put in my disclaimer and reiterate luxfelix. Only you can interpret your dreams. Everything I present is my opinion of what the symbols represent. I will also second the recommendations of Campbell and Jung and add Condron’s Dreamer’s Dictionary. If you are dreaming in that much detail on a regular basis, just think what you can do if you study. We only use a small portion of our minds and it looks and sounds like you are tapping into much more than the average Joe. *Cracks Knuckles* (borrowing from luxfelix again but this dream truly needs that physical/mental preparation and focus) Because of my background in dream interpretation, I am going to disagree with a couple of the symbol interpretations made by luxfelix. Hopefully, this will give you a different perspective and food for thought about how you might come up with your own system that is different from either of ours. Anyway, I digress. Black suit and tie – formal attire? Are you approaching your life decisions in a formal manner with specific rules or morals or ethics? If so, think about what they are and how they might relate to this dream. You are “setting the stage” with your dress for how you interact with the movie of your life. Also how you dress is how you present yourself to the world. So that might be a consideration here as well to determine what this part of the dream indicates. Dreams can indicate how you think about yourself. They can indicate how you present yourself, or how you approach the world, etc. It is interesting to note that you had a similar dream the night before but it was not exactly the same. This is further evidence of how your dreams relate to your present state of consciousness. They change with your daily thoughts. Each morning you are presented with the opportunity to examine your thoughts and actions of the previous day. Armed with that information you can make more informed choices for the coming day. But I digress again into the importance of dream interpretation. Up the staircase – going or looking deeper into your mind. Going left I now see is quite significant. Thanks to luxfelix for helping me expand my knowledge and skill. I believe when you investigate this further you may find significance in Left being less productive or sinister choices and Right being righteous and productive choices being made. 4 hallways. This may relate to the formal attire in that there are 4 distinct or formal choices of direction made as you are moving forward. This would be in contrast to someone who randomly moved from one place to another in their dream. In your dream, the progression is distinctly laid out and intentionally created as part of a movie set. So beyond the intentionally created walls is darkness and the unknown. There is even a sign threatening harm and death as it is written in blood – like your life’s blood. There is a great deal here in the details that indicate how you think about yourself and how you approach life. Some of my thoughts are that you were taught early in life to follow the rules or you will get in trouble. But you would also have a tendency to look outside of those walls to other possibilities (the higher wall further back) with a desire to explore, but as of the date of this dream you are still not willing to go outside of those boundaries. There is a thought pattern built early that keeps you within a certain circle of experience that is “safe”. Who made the movie set? Is it the person watching you? By the way, that person would also be you. There is this aspect of ourselves that is always watching over us and telling us what is right and what is wrong based on what we learned about ethics and morality in childhood. Our “inner authority” for lack of a better word to describe it. My experience is that it relates to your own drive to know yourself more deeply. So that is the “watcher” throughout the dream. Again, what is being “watched” to keep you safe would be based on what you internalized as a child. This idea is further solidified when you make the right turn (the righteous path) which might indicate what a slight change to a more productive thought or approach would be. As you look to the left (sinister side) You see that a man (you) is being tortured by 2 men (also you) but you do not interfere due to that inner voice that says you will experience pain and perhaps death if you interfere. An approach might be to find out what they are doing to torture the bound man. Just to become aware of it – not to change it at this time. So responding to not knowing what is torturing him and also not directly interfering would be a small step that you could take. The white sheet – perhaps relating to purity. Legs visible perhaps related to the ability to move forward to a destination. There is a lot of detail here that you would need to decode for insight into exactly how you are torturing yourself and what patterns of thinking you are using to accomplish the deed. The third hallway is another left turn. Interesting, now there is a cardboard – or fake -- image of a man. Since you did not include it in the dream, I’m going to add information about the cover of Atlas Shrugged. Please ignore if you already have this information. The man on the cover is the Greek god Atlas who was given the task of holding the heavens on his shoulders as punishment from Zeus for leading the Titans in their battle with the Olympian Gods for control of the heavens. The book Atlas Shrugged is related to what happens when Atlas shrugs and says, “The heck with this bearing the weight of the world, I’m living for myself” and relieves himself (or herself as in Dagny Taggert) of the burden. That’s my opinion and interpretation of the book cover as it relates to the title and content of the book. Again, using the idea that the left is the sinister side – which does not produce the life you want. There is an artificial image of yourself that you need to be ignoble, angry and intimidating and perhaps all of that is because you think you have to bear the weight of the world on your shoulders. These ideas come from the invisible watcher as the “power” you hold. I can see that you would not want to identify with that kind of aggressive power and desire a change. Again, this is the non-productive, or left, hallway. The fourth hallway. You have not entered it so that might indicate you are considering your next action but haven’t taken any steps yet. This is sometimes where dreams can really be beneficial if they seem to suggest a path to change. The child would also be you. We change our ideas of who we are many times throughout our lives based on the choices we make, the experiences those choices create, and the subsequent choices we make. In the process, we first conceive of an idea and then birth and develop it. I have seen this depicted in dreams with children of various ages as stages in the development of that idea of who we are and how we will interact with the world. It’s kind of like a report card of where you are in the process of making changes in your thoughts about yourself. The child is happy. You are happy with the new idea about yourself. There are two shadow images – perhaps the two left hallways and the choices you are making when you are going down that hallway. They are shadowing the child. At four the child would be learning what? That might be important to know the stage of progression of this idea as it was prominent in the dream. The gun and shooting are related to making dramatic and conscious changes to your idea of who you are. I say this because death is a transition from being a certain way and then you no longer exist in that way. In dreams, it means that the idea that you had about yourself dies. It will be replaced with something else as in reality you are still alive and you will continue to create new ideas about who you are and what you want to do with your life. I interpret any kind of death in a dream as an old way of thinking dying and the children are the new ideas that have been birthed. I use the terms dramatic and conscious changes with guns and violent death as it is different than someone in your dreams dying of old age which might indicate a way of thinking that served its purpose and you simply outgrew it over time. With guns and a swift demise there is a conscious awareness that something needs to change and it is acted upon. Sometimes that can be identified as a “bad” person that you kill but sometimes it’s just that an idea did not pan out or needs to be adjusted in some way to work more effectively – so babies and children die when you change how you are thinking before an idea reaches maturity. Sometimes is can mean that you are sabotaging your ideas before you bring them to fruition. The second part of the dream is not as clear to me. Except that there is some examination of your thoughts and how you perceive the world indicated by being on the third floor of the house in addition to your description of “contemplating” in the dream. The viewing of the world from a third story window would be like taking some quiet time or meditation time to examine how you think. Going into the pantry would be looking for nourishment. In this case something to nourish your mind as it is a dream. I don’t have any impression of what the collapsing part means. Other than there may be some thought about being ignored by your mother. Not your real mother but what your mother means to you in the dream. I know you mentioned that you see her as an overgrown child. Perhaps that idea or perhaps another. The more I look at that part of the dream and the symbolism it seems that I might be unclear because that part of the dream is indicating you are unclear on what you need to do. The bathroom is not a bathroom. It is not located in the correct place in the house. You are on the 3rd floor but there is no 3rd floor. You are ignored by the dream mother – that might be you ignoring what your dream mother is offering because you are unclear how to use her influence. The collapsing in the pantry would mean that you did not actually get the nourishment you were seeking as you collapsed before consuming (at least you did not indicate eating anything in what you wrote). All of this is confusing and leads nowhere. At this point I’m going to have to sum up the third part and give my overall impression as I’ve been working on this for 2 hours and I need to get back to work J Hopefully, some of what I have written makes sense and will give you an idea about my approach to dream interpretation and that might stimulate you to investigate on your own. The third part seems to offer the solution to the dilemma. I say this because of the same scenario but looking at it from a different perspective. The first hallway – observing your actions and developing the observer in you. Using the flashback information – I wish I had more time to offer insight to that and perhaps later I will – to successfully navigate that first hallway. Second hallway – look to the right instead of the left – Pinocchio – it’s easy to tell when he lies. That seems clear. Be honest in your communication with yourself and others. Third hallway – give no attention to the man and just keep moving. Fourth hallway – female perspective but it is you. Pay attention to your subconscious thoughts and use them for direction (the female aspect being part of you but internal as opposed to the outward male that you actually embody now). Awareness of injury – your awareness of your damaged childhood. Door opened to mother’s bathroom. That’s the pathway. Bathroom eliminates waste. Get rid of the stuff that is no longer useful in your life. Invisible entity – aspect of yourself you are not aware of that is injuring your creative capacity – stab to the womb. I would go with 5 days as that is the impression you had in the dream. When I read it I read it as 5 days and was only aware of “score” because of your note. Shooting the baby – this time only the spectral images are killed. So the productive part is saved and reaches you. So apparently the idea is valid and useful but the spectral images are distorting it and need to be eliminated. Nosferatu I had to look up. A vampire it appears. So the idea apparently still needs to change as it is sucking off the blood of others. Apparently you do not have the tools to do the job properly. I skipped a lot of stuff there on the 3rd part. There is so much more here and I just do not have the time to give to it. I apologize but hopefully you will get something out of some of this.