I have vivid, crazy dreams .They are so clear, so bizarre and I’m often asked if I have any idea what they mean. Or, do I really even get restful sleep? In my last post, I talked about the dream that made me feel happy, aware of my stressors and how to fix them. This dream stuck with me, made me feel like I understood my muddled brain a little more. So, I ask you, are you listening to your dreams?
Often our dreams are our brains sorting through the days, weeks events, our biggest stressors or fears. It’s a time when our brain can focus on this, with no interruption. My dreams are never straight forward. They are mixed with the tv shows/movies we’re watching, friends or family we haven’t seen in a while combined with our wild imaginations. Some people swear they don’t remember their dreams, but there are ways to remember them and even listen to them. Are you listening to your dreams? Use your dreams to sort through your real life issues.
A Midlife Dream of Healing, History, and Home
I dreamt of an old building I had purchased. A family was moving out. Mom, dad and two young girls. The house was cluttered with furniture, junk and a lot of their personal items. They gave us the keys to the cluttered house, left and we immediately got to work. We started going through drawers, deciding what furniture we’d keep, determining how much was going to need to be thrown away, what could be sold, etc. I found a beautiful but unusually tall desk.
As I opened the drawers there were pencils paper-normal desk supplies. But in one small drawer there was a shell that looked like it had rice in it. Behind the shell I noticed movement and realized there were 3-4 fat maggots. I closed the drawers, not in abject horror as I would in real life, but as just one more thing to clean and take care of. We were cleaning out to renovate. It was so cluttered and full, but I could see the potential.
A Helpful Friend
Suddenly, I noticed a man suddenly to my right, but I wasn’t scared. I asked him, if I could help him and he moved towards me. Quickly, I realized he was a ghost. The house had a helpful butler ghost and I could see him. He was surprised that I could see him and happy to have someone in the house who was going to bring the home back to its former glory. He showed me housing flaws, termites, weak floor areas and gave me the history of the house and land. His extremely helpful and kind advice made him instantly felt like a friend.
Home of Safety, Joy and Animals
The house was a half circle when you entered. In the middle of the circle was a rocky wall that kept a pool that was connected, flowing into a river where capybara and sloths played. They occasionally made it into the building from the pool. They were friendly and would walk over to be cuddled and then you could carry them back to their water. Sometimes they just wanted to check out the rooms. The ghost butler could understand them and would tell me when they wanted to wander or when they wanted to just cuddle.
There were rooms all around including an old library area where the bookshelves weren’t salvageable. I found this out by shaking them to see if they were anchored to the wall and they came crashing down.
After we did an inventory, moved everything out, cleaned and pulled up the carpets, I sat on the floor looking around. And I could see it, what it was, what it would become. I felt peace and excitement and I knew I was moving in the right direction.
The Unknown and Darkness
There was a section of the house that felt different. It was darker with little light and wasn’t inviting. I began walking towards the area and instantly noticed the difference from the light, bright happy animal filled part of the house. This area was a dark, ominous cavernous hallway leading to a room I couldn’t see due to the darkness. The Butler stopped me and said he needed to tell me something that might make me ask him to leave.
A Confession and Healing
He asked if he could show me what happened. He put his hands to my head where I saw a dark cabin like room with a large rock fireplace in the center of the back wall. To the right, was a large angry man who was obviously in a rage. To the left were 3-4 girls aged 5ish to 10, huddled by the fireplace, fear etched on their faces. I instantly knew he was abusing them and was not a good man. Suddenly, the real life butler entered and a fight ensued between the two men.
When I came out of the vision to the ghost butler telling me it was an accident, he was trying to protect the girls and had accidentally killed the father and then killed himself in shame. Because it was a time when women couldn’t own property, the girls uncle moved into the home and they were kicked out to fend for themselves. I told him, he was protecting the girls and has been taking care of them since that time. He had more than made up for the girls being kicked out of their home.
Cleansing the past and Creating Something New
We cleansed the entire house, with extra attention paid to the area where the butler and original owner had passed. This cleansing was just some palo santo and candles, opened the doors and windows and felt the energy change. It was brighter, lighter and ready to be something new.
Original Owners
I saw the three girls (ghosts) standing on the hill in black dated dresses. They weren’t ready to talk to me yet. I went with the person who helped me cleanse the house. We decided to clean the girls grave stones, get the weeds out and plant new flowers in their space. The girls still weren’t talking but had moved closer. So I spoke out loud about ideas to honor them. A mausoleum or at least a fenced in area. After scrolling through options on my phone one girl pointed at a picture of a mausoleum that had windows. She finally spoke and said they wanted to be protected but their sister wanted to see outside.
The land was original native land and previous owners had collected native items as decor. With many just piled up in between the clutter of the house.
I knew in the dream I had to do something to honor those who had the land stolen from them and those who had their house taken from them. Money was no object and i wanted to do what was best for the house and lands and the ghosts of former occupants.
Honoring the Land and Home
I visited with a local tribe historian to ask him how I could honor the land and the items that I assumed were found on the property. I had plans drawn up with several options. A masoleum type building on the opposite corner of the girls resting place, a burial with a plaque, a building where visitors could learn about the history of the land and its people and a few others.
Ultimately we decide to put the items back in the ground with a plaque describing the tribes whose land we were on as well as their history. We didn’t mention the buried items for fear a dumb guest would dig something up and take as a souvenir.
What the Dream Taught Me
When I woke, the message was clear:
This dream wasn’t about a house.
It was about me.
The house was my life — layered, cluttered, beautiful, wounded, and waiting to be restored. The butler was the part of me that still believes in redemption and good stewardship. The maggots, the ghosts, the artifacts — all reminders that what we bury eventually asks to be seen, honored, and healed.
Midlife isn’t about tearing down what’s old — it’s about restoring what’s true.
It’s about honoring every version of ourselves: the caretaker, the dreamer, the wounded child, and the ghost who still guards our story.
Dream Analysis
Regardless of how you feel about dream analysis or listening to your dreams. I know that this is my brain trying to tell me I have too much clutter in my life. I’m not doing what I want to be doing and I need to honor my values more to find a way to be happy. Listening to your dreams doesn’t have to be a weird experience. Think of it as giving your brain the time to deconstruct all that goes on in your waking life to make sense of it all.
Listening to Your Dreams
Do you have recurring dreams or dreams that have a theme you need to figure out? Do your dreams tell you anything about your waking self that you need to work on? Listening to your dreams is a great way to learn who you are at your subconscious and what you really want when everything else falls away.