Dream #1 : An Angel writing a book

Share: I had received this dream in my childhood, maybe when I was 13 or 14 years old. It was during one of my meditations that I remembered this dream. It was related to a poem that was in my syllabus that year and was being taught in class at the time I had the dream. I remember the poem well, until now.

Dream: I woke up in my sleep and saw a bright light coming into my room through a window. There was an Angel writing in a book. Then the Angel disappeared and the book was there. I looked in the book and found my name in a list of names. It wasn't at the top of the list. But I still felt happy that at least my name was there. All the other names were in black and mine was written in red.

Share: During the dream, I was in the house of my ancestors where I was born and lived until I was 10 years old. The name of the poem I am referring to is 'Abu Ben Adhem' written by James Henry Leigh Hunt (1784):

Dream (continued): He awoke one night from a deep dream of peace, and saw in the moonlight of his room, making it rich, and like a lily in bloom, an Angel writing in a golden book. Adhem had the peace of heart that makes bold, and to the presence in the room he said. "What are you writing there? "
The vision raised its head and with a look of sweetness answered, "The names of those who love the Lord." Adhem asked, "Is my name among them?" "No, I don't see it," replied the Angel. Abu spoke lower, but still joyfully, and said, "I pray thee then. Write to me as one who loves his fellow men. The Angel wrote and disappeared. The next night he returned with a great light of awakening. And showed the names that the love of God had blessed, and the name of Ben Adhem led all the others.

Dream #2: Coming back to life

Dream: John (Steve's father) (in the negative, he represents low self-esteem, complacency, addictions) and I are standing on a road. It looks like a road in my hometown. On one side of this road is a slope with a pine forest on it. In fact, this is where a school for the tribal children is located.

In my dream, however, I believe it is a cemetery and that this is where my sister Elizabeth (in the negative, she represents the use of spirituality to escape repressed emotions and a resulting accumulation of negative thoughts), who has passed away, is buried. In reality, she was cremated as she wanted.

As John and I talk, I have a strong feeling that Elizabeth will come back to life. I try to ignore this feeling. Soon, however, I see someone coming out of the cemetery and wonder if my hunch has come true, but I push the thought out of my head by saying that this person is too thin to be Elizabeth.

John sees her too and we both exclaim that it is indeed my sister, back from the dead. On the one hand, I have a strange feeling, but I am also happy that she has returned. We walk towards her and as we embrace her, I cry bitterly. I notice how thin and frail she has become.

In the next scene, we are in his house and there is no one there but the three of us, because everyone else has left for work. I think of all the family members who have left. I think about her father-in-law and her husband in particular and wonder how they will react when they get home. I see her sitting at the computer and typing.

I know she is trying to find an explanation for what she experienced in the grave. I decide not to ask her anything because I understand that she needs space to be able to accept her experience. I notice her skin - it is translucent.