R is for Running in Slow Motion in Dreams

I remember as a kid I had these dreams. I was chased by kids bigger and badder than me. Try as I might, I could not run faster than running in slow motion. It was very similar to a lucid dream (scroll back to L is for Lucid Dream) where I was awake in my dream. 

The major difference was that I could not make a conscious effort to run faster and escape. Maybe this falls in the category of a nightmare; awake in the middle of a dream with imminent danger but not having the ability to change anything. 

One general consensus here is anxiety. Your legs push you forward throughout your life and there is resistance to your progress. You are in a situation where an intrusive force is disrupting your otherwise peaceful world, sometimes even mocking you, and you have no control over it. At least at the moment. Life changes often for the better. You just have to go through trials and tribulations and learn how to overcome. 

Honorable Mention Race, Recurring Dreams and Red 

Tomorrow S is for Sleep Paralysis 

Question Have you had a similar dream where there was a force resisting your progress?

Q is for Quarantine (not as bad as you might think)

Quarantine Let me reiterate that not all dreams need interpreting. But for those dreams that you feel might need such assistance, that’s what this theme is all about. 

Like many elements of a dream, quarantine is a double-edged sword. It can have two meanings depending on perspective: are you the one quarantined, or are you looking at the quarantined. Big difference. 

Quarantined generally insinuates creating a distance between you and someone or something else. An action needs to take place to change an outcome; or you need to run in the opposite direction. 

Quarantine may not be a bad dream. It could be a warning of self-protection in advance so that you or someone else does not make a mistake or get hurt.

Honorable Mention Queen, Question and Quicksand

Tomorrow's Post R is for Running in Slow Motion

Question Have you had a dream that included quarantined, regardless of the side of the quarantined door you stood?

P is for Prophetic Dreams, Progressive Dreams and Places (setting)

Prophetic Dreams You see the future through your dream. Not every future dream is prophetic. It may or may not come to pass. If it does, that doesn’t necessarily make it prophetic. But you have to ask yourself, what are the chances of it coming to pass? If they are quite slim, you need to do a reality check and ask yourself, was that a prophetic dream? 

Progressive Dreams These dreams can be classified as sequels and occur in part over a period of time. They generally focus on solving a problem or exploring approaches to a situation or even solution. For whatever reasons, these dreams occur fragmented over a period of time but can be pieced together like a jig-saw puzzle to make sense to the dream. 

Places (setting) Jung and others have proposed the setting in which a dream takes places is the symbol of the person's state of being and life. It’s a map of how you see yourself. Large building might represent big endeavors. A setting in disarray might mean confusion or turmoil. There could be a street intersection or a fork in the road at a place you once lived as a child. 

Honorable Mention Package, People and Purple 

Tomorrow Q is for Quarantine, Queen and Quicksand

Question 

O is for Orange

Colors They play an important role in dreams and any possible interpretation. Me, I look to the Bible to see what colors mean there, and then seek out if there is a correlation to colors in my dreams. 

Example In general, blue should be viewed as a heavenly color. Crimson is used to describe fine materials and sin. Green is a symbol of natural growth and life. Purple represents royalty.

However Not all colors have a specific or even a general meaning in the Bible. Not even a mention. Orange is one of them. I had a dream that I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt was from God (and these dreams are the exception rather than the norm). 

I was an astronaut (childhood ambition) inside a capsule colored mainly in orange with white highlights headed for deep space. Our outfits were also orange with white highlights. Think Matt Damian on The Martian, and my dream occurred about a year before the movie was released. The resemblance is uncanny. See tomorrow's post P is for Prophetic Dream.

We were so ahead of the times in every category speeding toward our goal to wherever the heck it was we were going. That was the dream and nothing more. 

Meaning Was Simple Orange is not used in the Bible. So I looked at the next best thing which is God’s handiwork; his creation. And in his creation orange is the color of harvest or autumn or sunset. And these are the end of a season or day of hard work. The key word that stood out: Harvest.

So I sought and felt a deep conviction that this was the interpretation of the dream. And yes, things are coming to pass that I will most certainly call a harvest to all my hard work over the past years with more in the works. 

Side Note If you don’t harvest the fruits of your, a thief might steal what you so diligently worked for, or your harvest will rot in the fields. So if you see orange prominent in a dream, you may be rocketing toward a harvest for all your hard work over the years. 

Honorable Mention Oasis, Ocean and Outer Space 

Tomorrow P is for Prophetic Dream, Paralysis and Places (settings)

Reruns If you haven't checked out M is for Movies take a moment to scroll the list of movies with dreams playing a big role in their success!
  

Question Have you had dreams related to a harvest from all your hard work? Orange may or may not be involved. A mature wheat field flowing in the winds on a prairie could mean the same thing.

N is for Nightmares, Night Terrors and Naked in Public (One out of three ain't so bad)

Loved the Monsters Inc Movies. Hope There's a Third!

Nightmares We’ve all had them. They are vividly distinct and disturbing dreams. Sure, nightmares are more common among children. However, one out of every two adults has nightmares on occasion and between 2% and 8% of the adult population are plagued by nightmares. 

Nightmares may have terrifying man-eating monsters chasing you, or you cannot outrun or escape danger. You could be about falling from a great height (see F is for Falling). 

Although nightmares and night terrors both cause people to awake in great fear, they are very much different in nature. 

Night Terrors These dreams generally occur in children during the first few hours after falling asleep. They are experienced as feelings, not dreams, so they don’t recall why they are terrified when they wake up. Yeah, that is scary, waking up being scared, and not knowing why. Reference 

Naked in Public Okay, you might think this dream is certainly a nightmare. However, many experts and mystics claim being partially or completely naked in public, especially around people you know, is a sign of confidence. You are compromised and exposed. Yet no matter how dire or humiliating the situation may be, you are an overcomer and there is absolutely no one or nothing that can stop you in whatever challenge comes your way. You are a super conqueror!

So the next time you are naked in your dreams, give yourself a fist pump and a loud shouting Whoo-hoo! Then tell the person next to you the what and why you are doing that! 

Honorable Mention Names, Newborns and Nature 

Monday’s Post O is for Orange (this is a really cool dream you will want to know about)

M is for Movies

Time to have a little fun and discuss movies with dream themes. Here are ten movies, in alphabetical order, where dreams play a central role:

Avatar This movie was inspired by a dream James Cameron's mother had, blue woman and all. A paraplegic marine dispatched to the moon Pandora on a unique mission becomes torn between following his orders and protecting the world he feels is his home. 

Inception A thief, who steals corporate secrets through use of dream-sharing technology, is given the inverse task of planting an idea into the mind of a CEO. 

Matrix The Matrix is, in essence, a shared lucid dream, guided by the Artifical Intelligence that creates the simulated reality. As Neo learns to bend these rules, he becomes increasingly lucid and aware, discovering that actually, anything is possible. 

Nightmare on Elm Street Several people are hunted by a cruel serial killer who kills his victims in their dreams. While the survivors are trying to find the reason for being chosen, the murderer won't lose any chance to kill them as soon as they fall asleep. 

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty Walter Mitty is a meek mild man with a vivid fantasy (daydreaming) life. When his job along with that of his co-worker are threatened, Walter takes action in the real world embarking on a global journey that turns into an adventure more extraordinary than anything he could have ever imagined. 

Total Recall When a man goes for virtual vacation memories of the planet Mars, an unexpected and harrowing series of events forces him to go to the planet for real - or does he? 

Vanilla Sky A self-indulgent and vain publishing magnate finds his privileged life upended after a vehicular accident with a resentful lover. 

The Last Newhart A TV show I needed to include. At the end of the last show of  Newhart (1982 - 1990), Bob Newhart wakes up next to his wife from his previous TV series The Bob Newhart Show (1972 - 1978) The latter series was just one long crazy dream. One of the most memorable and craziest endings ever.

Waking Life A man shuffles through a dream meeting various people and discussing the meanings and purposes of the universe. 

Wizard of OZ Dorothy Gale is swept away to a magical land in a tornado and embarks on a quest to see the Wizard who can help her return home. 

Fast Times at Ridgemont High Bonus Feature!!! Okay, so there was only one dream in this movie but it's a classic. Enjoy!

Honorable Mention Mutual dreams (two people dreaming in sync), Mystics and 

Tomorrow N is for Nightmares, Night Terrors and Naked Dreams

Question What are some of your favorite dream movies?

L is for Lucid Dreams (False Awakenings)

Lucid Dreaming dreaming while knowing that you are dreaming. The term was coined by Frederik van Eeden who used the word "lucid" in the sense of mental clarity. Lucidity usually begins in the midst of a dream when the dreamer realizes that the experience is not occurring in physical reality, but is a dream. 

Often this realization is triggered by the dreamer noticing some impossible or unlikely occurrence in the dream, such as flying or meeting the deceased. 

When lucidity is at a high level, you are aware that everything experienced in the dream is occurring in your mind, that there is no real danger, and that you are asleep in bed and will awaken shortly. 

With low-level lucidity you may be aware to a certain extent that you are dreaming, perhaps enough to fly or alter what you are doing, but not enough to realize that the people are dream representations, or that you can suffer no physical damage, or that you are actually in bed. Reference 

I have had lucid dreams where I could actually make free will decisions. They are crazy weird. One such dream I was in mortal combat with someone I knew and I really had to focus and fight for my life while making conscious decisions such as how to defend and attack. I’ll never forget that dream.

Honorable Mention Language, Landscape and Love

Tomorrow M is for Movies (best of dreams in film)

Question Have you had a lucid dream? I'd really like to hear about it.