"Later" Dreams :
Dream 418 on from March 2012 to …………….
Dream 418 on from March 2012 to …………….
A phone call comes. The caller asks me to come and look around his farm. He says he is the new owner. What he describes sounds interesting. I tell him I’ll come.
As I arrive I see that things do indeed look promising, there are interesting outbuildings. The new owner begins to show me around but is suddenly called away. I wonder what I am supposed to do now? I decide to have a bit of a scout about and soon come across some beautiful purple heather moorland in full bloom beneath a light cover of silver birch woodland. It’s all very beautiful. I think that I’d better not go too far and return to the farm buildings. I note that they look like they are inhabited. Inside, in one of the rooms there is a bed and I decide to take a nap while the owner is still about his business. I get into bed and sleep. After a short while the owner returns, together with a couple of male colleagues. They are ready to show me around now. I get the feeling that they are not very impressed to see me in bed. I get up quickly and we begin the tour. Very soon the full extent of the heather moorland habitat becomes apparent, it’s very impressive and I start to get enthusiastic and excited. We walk on and the heather-woodland merges into short grazed pasture. Here the heather is heavily grazed and splashes the green of the pasture like dense purple clumps of Self-heal, along with bright yellow clumps of Birdsfoot Trefoil. I’m impressed. It’s a wonderful scene. The positive feeling builds and soon I’m in raptures, almost in tears, with the beauty of it all.
We move on to look at an old barn and some other outbuildings. In the ruined barn I’m amazed at the quality of the stonework and the tracery of the windows; such quality would not be out of place in a cathedral. It’s just fantastic! Looking from the barn I can see the farmhouse, it too is of superior quality and very picturesque. There is nothing twee about it, it’s solid and stone built. Although it is a little run down it’s clear that no expense was spared in its construction. We move on to examine the house and find that its walls are clad in a very fine fibreglass coating which can easily be lifted away from the stone wall; when this is done I can see how thin, fine and translucent it is. This in turn explains why the detailing of the stonework is so fine and of such a good appearance, its fibreglass and using this must have kept the cost down considerably. Inside the farmhouse the internal dividing walls have collapsed and the fibreglass coatings that covered them just hangs in empty space to mark their former position. The thin translucent nature of these coatings is again very obvious.
We walk on and come to a narrow steep sided gully, which has tortuous knotted tree roots exposed in its sides. It reminds me of Puzzle Wood. I remark that “this place has everything” and continue to enthuse about the farm and its setting. We move along the top edge of the gully, admiring the rock outcrops that occur there. These outcrops consist of markedly banded sandstones with alternating dark grey and white bands. The rocks are also heavily encrusted with wonderful mid-blue lustrous lichen. I am in raptures; this is just too wonderful, just superb. This place has something to amaze and delight around every corner.
Moving on we obtain panoramic views across a broad valley and I realise that we are on the hillside somewhere southwest of Cwmbran looking towards my home side of the valley (where I lived as a child). The view provides a great new aspect and perspective on my home territory that I’ve not seen before. I make a mental comparison between this site and Cwmbran Community Farm, which I’ve never really rated. How could the local authority have overlooked this place when seeking to establish a community farm – it’s so much better.
I now realise that I am on this visit with Trustees of the Brecon Beacons Trust and that as Cwmbran is outside the Brecon Beacons National Park the Trust won't be able to fund it. What a shame! But there must be other ways that we can help. I ask one of the Trustees, who is just ahead of the main group, if the Farm and its owner are well plugged into Environment Wales – she thinks they are. We’ve seen a lot and now its time to go but I make a mental note to come back and volunteer at this place.
We are now in a small town, Pontnewydd (Newbridge) and a big black 4*4 arrives to take the owner away. He gets in and it drives off.
I now realise that I am on this visit with Trustees of the Brecon Beacons Trust and that as Cwmbran is outside the Brecon Beacons National Park the Trust won't be able to fund it. What a shame! But there must be other ways that we can help. I ask one of the Trustees, who is just ahead of the main group, if the Farm and its owner are well plugged into Environment Wales – she thinks they are. We’ve seen a lot and now its time to go but I make a mental note to come back and volunteer at this place.
We are now in a small town, Pontnewydd (Newbridge) and a big black 4*4 arrives to take the owner away. He gets in and it drives off.
As we approach the outlying fields a herd of mammoth come buffalo moves in to view. We are a little surprised; as we can’t recall the owner mentioning that they had a herd of these creatures on the farm either during his initial phone call of during the farm tour. How could he forget about them!? We watch as the mammoth/buffalo rush and gambol, yes gambol, around the field. The amazing thing is that although they have some tufts of rusty coloured hair on their shoulders and joints etc. they are mostly vitreous and transparent in appearance. As they continue to run about playfully you can clearly see all of their internal organs and joints. It's a fascinating thing to observe as they move about.
Somehow the owner turns up and greets us, welcoming us back. He joins us in admiring the joyful antics of this amazing herd.
D419 29th: March 2012 : The Green Signature – in triplicate!
I feel the presence of a large powerful male. Although at first, I am a little cautious it would seem that at last we are in agreement, and that it is time to formally recognise this fact. To make things official we will sign a concordat. I sign in three places, at the top of the document, at the bottom and in the middle. I sign with a buttercup held just like a pen. The golden flower is at the top of the “pen” while I use the broken off point of the stem to write with. As I sign the uneven nature of the broken stem’s point results in it scratching over the paper. It does not write very smoothly and jumps across the page producing a rather interrupted signature. The sap seeping from the stem acts as the ink; it slowly disperses and is absorbed into the paper, spreading out and making my signature rather fuzzy. I note the colour of the ink forming the signatures. It’s a vivid, bright, light green.
I stand on Yorkshire cliffs high above the sea. A large fishing boat is just leaving the bay. Under the surface of the bay a huge grey cloud can be seen clearly revealing that the shoal of fish the boat has been targeting is still there. Now I'm flying and moving towards the shoal, at first flying over it but then diving underwater. Here great shapes appear, the shadows of Orca, Killer Whales. I watch them lunge through the shoal and then on to pursue individual fish. Now, and to my great surprise, a herd of underwater zebra "gallop", with little apparent effort, through water as they too pursue the small fish. This herd of "sea horses" are amazing.
Now standing at a lakeside, the zebra emerge from its still waters. In my position at right angles to the galloping herd I watch them move along the shore. I am in wonder. This is remarkable. They seem to have brought the water of the lake with them. As they begin to enter open woodland the "water" of the lake fills all the air and space. It's mostly invisible but you get the odd shimmer to indicate its presence. The movements of the zebra herd, although now very free, seem just as if they were still running under the sea.
The rest of my family arrive and I urge them to watch this wondrous scene. I continue to express my amazement and delight. The zebra seem to be having great fun as they duck under branches and leap over bramble patches, demonstrating great grace and agility.
Commentary: Although Openfoot has not made this dream available on this site previously he has shard it publicly via Carl Young's (@CarlaYoung10) The Daily Dreamer (http://youngandjung.blogspot.com/) It is Carla's artwork of the underwater zebra that is shown above right.
Carla's thoughts on this dream were: Tony Crisp says that “deeply unconscious processes are often depicted by fish” and that fishing can symbolise “a receptive state of consciousness which allows the deep insights or processes to become known.”
If this were my dream, it would be about my movement toward a more expansive, intuitive understanding of my place in the world and a more joyful experience of life. Life abounds in my dream, but in the beginning I am looking down on it from a lofty cliff; I'm far above the sea. So I go “fishing” for something else. A bay is more constricted than the sea, and as I leave this more confined space I see a huge grey cloud, representing a shoal of fish. As I progress through my dream, I notice the proportion of grey to black and white reverses. At this early point, my quest lacks clarity, and so it appears huge and grey. The resolution I experience in the dream will be symbolised by the proportion of black, white and grey in the dream animals.
I'm in pursuit, and what I'm after is the resolution of a conflict I'm feeling between my personal and my group identity. Can I be my true self in a group? Fish in a shoal band together, but do not coordinate their movements as do those in a school. I am sociable, but not immersed in the herd. I investigate this community from above and below: I fly above it; I dive beneath it. As I watch, the shadowy Orca, another great grey shape, goes after “individual” fish. Being an individual is clearly a scary and vulnerable thing to be. But wait! Something is coming into focus for me: the Orca is mostly a black and white creature, with only a small grey area over its dorsal fin. My confusion (the grey area) has shrunk. With the appearance of the zebra I have resolved my conflict: these creatures have no grey areas at all. I am free to be me!
The zebra leave the sea; as they come out of the water I gallop toward a rebirth. I am at right angles to them (I see them correctly, from the right angle or viewpoint). Magical and mysterious and wonderful imagery tells me that I have had an epiphany. The zebra have brought the water of the lake (the mists of the mythical Avalon) with them. I watch in wonder, sharing the moment with those dearest to me. I am in sync both with my family (the community of man) and with my natural and unique self.
Carla's thoughts on this dream were: Tony Crisp says that “deeply unconscious processes are often depicted by fish” and that fishing can symbolise “a receptive state of consciousness which allows the deep insights or processes to become known.”
If this were my dream, it would be about my movement toward a more expansive, intuitive understanding of my place in the world and a more joyful experience of life. Life abounds in my dream, but in the beginning I am looking down on it from a lofty cliff; I'm far above the sea. So I go “fishing” for something else. A bay is more constricted than the sea, and as I leave this more confined space I see a huge grey cloud, representing a shoal of fish. As I progress through my dream, I notice the proportion of grey to black and white reverses. At this early point, my quest lacks clarity, and so it appears huge and grey. The resolution I experience in the dream will be symbolised by the proportion of black, white and grey in the dream animals.
I'm in pursuit, and what I'm after is the resolution of a conflict I'm feeling between my personal and my group identity. Can I be my true self in a group? Fish in a shoal band together, but do not coordinate their movements as do those in a school. I am sociable, but not immersed in the herd. I investigate this community from above and below: I fly above it; I dive beneath it. As I watch, the shadowy Orca, another great grey shape, goes after “individual” fish. Being an individual is clearly a scary and vulnerable thing to be. But wait! Something is coming into focus for me: the Orca is mostly a black and white creature, with only a small grey area over its dorsal fin. My confusion (the grey area) has shrunk. With the appearance of the zebra I have resolved my conflict: these creatures have no grey areas at all. I am free to be me!
The zebra leave the sea; as they come out of the water I gallop toward a rebirth. I am at right angles to them (I see them correctly, from the right angle or viewpoint). Magical and mysterious and wonderful imagery tells me that I have had an epiphany. The zebra have brought the water of the lake (the mists of the mythical Avalon) with them. I watch in wonder, sharing the moment with those dearest to me. I am in sync both with my family (the community of man) and with my natural and unique self.
Openfoot replied: Hello Carla, Once again many thanks for you comments on my dream. It's great to have another perspective put forward. As with your comments on my previous Guest Dreams I find nothing to take issue with. There is nothing that makes me feel uncomfortable or that leads me to think "No! No! That's not right!" There are many personal associations in the dream; I think I could write an essay, but I will restrain myself. In any event I often find myself more concerned with the feeling component of the dream and its broad conceptual sweep, so I'll focus there.
Over the last year or so I have had a number of long dreams which I consider to be in a similar vein. This is perhaps the shortest of them. For me they all have the feeling of review, confirmation and restatement. They seem to me to encapsulate the whole of my dream progress over the last four decades while at the same time making a statement about how the various components of my psyche now stand in relation to one another and to the outside world. They have all had a very positive feel and have seemed to me to provide a "seal" on all that has gone before.
For example, the me on the cliff was the me forty years ago contemplating setting out on the path. From here I view and consider the fundamental divisions and dualities of the world such as earth and water, conscious and unconscious, black and white etc. I try to "catch" these issues with my educated, constructed, rational, mind (the fishing boat) but without success and it moves out of the scene.
I dive into what is, at this stage, largely unconscious and discover its various forms and autonomous living elements. Gradually they become less threatening and less of an unknown. My relationship with them is transformed as is my perception of the dualities of life. The dualities are now combined into one dynamic organic whole and this process proceeds at all levels of my psyche; with individual elements (the zebra) the collective (the herd) and now with that which is below combined with what is above, ( the zebra bring the water on to the land). Now the life that was below (was unconscious) is woven with the life that is above (is conscious), the woodland, trees and brambles, into a dynamic tapestry of being. I am at one and the same time both all of this and its observer. All elements of "my" psyche partake in it, they are it. The "world" has come to fruition in this "ecology of mind" and it is liberating. I want to share.
At the end of the dream I am once again standing on the shore , the dividing line between earth and water, and this time I'm with others. The man who at the start of the dream stood alone on a cliff (in itself a dangerous place to be) has not gone away but his position, his perspective, his being, have undergone a radical change.
Although it seems to me that the dream provides a lifetime review it is, I think, also a process which plays out each day as we sink into an emerge from the great deep, which means that life and being remain in their essence a wonderful mystery.
Thank you Carla for providing a space in which to share. With many thanks.
P.S. "Steps to an Ecology of Mind" by Gregory Bateson has always been my very favourite book title. :-)
Over the last year or so I have had a number of long dreams which I consider to be in a similar vein. This is perhaps the shortest of them. For me they all have the feeling of review, confirmation and restatement. They seem to me to encapsulate the whole of my dream progress over the last four decades while at the same time making a statement about how the various components of my psyche now stand in relation to one another and to the outside world. They have all had a very positive feel and have seemed to me to provide a "seal" on all that has gone before.
For example, the me on the cliff was the me forty years ago contemplating setting out on the path. From here I view and consider the fundamental divisions and dualities of the world such as earth and water, conscious and unconscious, black and white etc. I try to "catch" these issues with my educated, constructed, rational, mind (the fishing boat) but without success and it moves out of the scene.
I dive into what is, at this stage, largely unconscious and discover its various forms and autonomous living elements. Gradually they become less threatening and less of an unknown. My relationship with them is transformed as is my perception of the dualities of life. The dualities are now combined into one dynamic organic whole and this process proceeds at all levels of my psyche; with individual elements (the zebra) the collective (the herd) and now with that which is below combined with what is above, ( the zebra bring the water on to the land). Now the life that was below (was unconscious) is woven with the life that is above (is conscious), the woodland, trees and brambles, into a dynamic tapestry of being. I am at one and the same time both all of this and its observer. All elements of "my" psyche partake in it, they are it. The "world" has come to fruition in this "ecology of mind" and it is liberating. I want to share.
At the end of the dream I am once again standing on the shore , the dividing line between earth and water, and this time I'm with others. The man who at the start of the dream stood alone on a cliff (in itself a dangerous place to be) has not gone away but his position, his perspective, his being, have undergone a radical change.
Although it seems to me that the dream provides a lifetime review it is, I think, also a process which plays out each day as we sink into an emerge from the great deep, which means that life and being remain in their essence a wonderful mystery.
Thank you Carla for providing a space in which to share. With many thanks.
P.S. "Steps to an Ecology of Mind" by Gregory Bateson has always been my very favourite book title. :-)
D442 29th: Feb 2, 2013 : The Delightful Dream
I’ve been attending the meeting of a local charitable trust. As the meeting breaks up I decide to pay a visit to a nearby project, which has already been funded by the Trust, to check on the progress that has been made.
I stand at the top of a bank. To my right a grassy slope runs down to the river a couple of hundred yards away. To my left there is woodland of Silver Birch. I lean on the gate at the entrance to the woodland and take in the scene before me. It is early spring and the leaves of the Birch trees are just emerging. A beautiful diffuse golden green light illuminates the branches. It’s a sunny day and on the woodland floor the emerging dark green leaves of Bluebells carpet the ground. Here and there a light blue wash of the earliest Bluebell flowers flow around and between the bases of the tree trunks. The thin elegant silvery trunks seem woven like a beautiful piece of latticework.
Leading away from the gate is a path. This is clearly new and has been produced with Trust’s grant aid. All has gone well. It blends in beautifully with its surroundings. The path winds gently downhill and in some places a few steps have been inserted to make things easier. The path is surfaced with woodchip, which has a light golden brown colour. It all makes for a delightful scene.
I’ve been attending the meeting of a local charitable trust. As the meeting breaks up I decide to pay a visit to a nearby project, which has already been funded by the Trust, to check on the progress that has been made.
I stand at the top of a bank. To my right a grassy slope runs down to the river a couple of hundred yards away. To my left there is woodland of Silver Birch. I lean on the gate at the entrance to the woodland and take in the scene before me. It is early spring and the leaves of the Birch trees are just emerging. A beautiful diffuse golden green light illuminates the branches. It’s a sunny day and on the woodland floor the emerging dark green leaves of Bluebells carpet the ground. Here and there a light blue wash of the earliest Bluebell flowers flow around and between the bases of the tree trunks. The thin elegant silvery trunks seem woven like a beautiful piece of latticework.
Leading away from the gate is a path. This is clearly new and has been produced with Trust’s grant aid. All has gone well. It blends in beautifully with its surroundings. The path winds gently downhill and in some places a few steps have been inserted to make things easier. The path is surfaced with woodchip, which has a light golden brown colour. It all makes for a delightful scene.
A group of school children, in their early teens, make their way up the woodland path, through the gate, then continuing up along the edge of the wood. Everyone seems in good spirits. They wear a school uniform of a kind; mostly white shirts and blouses and dark grey or black skirts and trousers.
I find myself in the company of an elderly woman, we examine the long grass near the woodland’s edge. Here we come across all manner of delights. Here, on a stem of grass, is a beautifully marked moth or butterfly. It wings all blues, greys, yellows and browns. The manner in which its wings “flap” gently and the patterns on its wings and body move are mesmerising. It’s like a vision. Here are another four wonderful moth/butterflies with predominantly black, green and brown colouring. They have arranged themselves in a vertical line along a grass stem and if anything they are more wonderful than the first moth we saw.
I find myself in the company of an elderly woman, we examine the long grass near the woodland’s edge. Here we come across all manner of delights. Here, on a stem of grass, is a beautifully marked moth or butterfly. It wings all blues, greys, yellows and browns. The manner in which its wings “flap” gently and the patterns on its wings and body move are mesmerising. It’s like a vision. Here are another four wonderful moth/butterflies with predominantly black, green and brown colouring. They have arranged themselves in a vertical line along a grass stem and if anything they are more wonderful than the first moth we saw.
One of the four moths flies off over the vegetation. I try to follow it with my iPhone in the hope of making a video. I soon realise that its flight is so erratic that the chances of me tracking its movements successfully, or that anything will be in focus, are slim. I carry on and capture a series of other images. After I’m done the elderly woman and I wonder if any of these things that we’ve seen are rare or unusual. They are certainly beautiful.
I turn away from the woodland and look up into the clear blue sky. I see two, tall, thin balloons drifting lazily. I become aware that they are conducting a sampling mission of the atmosphere and the aerial plankton it contains. I notice that the baskets of the balloons are suspended from their envelopes on a single, long tether. The two balloons drift very close together. I momentarily fear that they will collide and that there will be an accident. The tether of one balloon makes contact with and then rolls over the envelope of the other, but luckily without causing any harm.
Is soon becomes clear that one of the balloons is descending. Its two occupants dangle at the end of the tether. One has his foot in a stirrup at the end of the tether. Yes, there is just one foot in the stirrup. The second balloonist is hanging on to the back of the first. They land gently, close by, and it is quickly apparent that the elderly lady and I know these two aeronauts.
The senior person from the balloon is androgynous, large and jovial. We’ve met him before. “He” and his companion are experts on moths and butterflies and will be able to tell us what we have found. We describe the moths we discovered and provide the evidence in the form of my iPhone video and images. Amazingly they all seem to be of good quality. When replaying the movie of the flitting moth I move about in exactly the same way as I needed to when tracking the moths flight, when capturing the movie originally.
We all sit around a table. The large affable and smiling expert says nothing. He/she is an everyday Buddha-like character, full of warmth and understanding. In a very matter of fact way he/she reports that what we have found is indeed remarkable. It is very unusual to see one of this species of moth but to see four on one stem is indeed something extraordinary. There are no excited or grand pronouncements of the “this is fantastic, awesome” type just a clear delight and pleasure at such a phenomena.
The androgynous one asks me if he might use my images when reporting and writing about the discovery. I reply “ Of course. Please feel free to use them”, but I ask that if he does make use them I would be most grateful if he would he would credit me appropriately. As long as there is no financial benefit to him there will be absolutely no charge involved
The dream has been full of feelings of delight throughout. There are no cares here, just wonder and simple enjoyment of the sights and phenomena that present themselves.
The dream has been full of feelings of delight throughout. There are no cares here, just wonder and simple enjoyment of the sights and phenomena that present themselves.
"The whole course of individuation is dialectical, and the so called "end" is the confrontation of the ego with the "emptiness" of the centre. Here the limit of possible experience is reached: the ego is dissolved as the reference point of cognition." C. G. Jung