Katherine replies:
“I’m not sure if the request was heard by me; however, I do know that I dreamt more than I usually do. Or at least I recall more of my dreams than is usually the case. If you don’t mind, let me share my notes about one of the more vivid dreams.”
Sonya:
“Please do. I’m anxious to hear what you are telling yourself in your dreams.”
Katherine:
“This dream took place late at night three nights ago. It began with my walk through a beautiful garden. In my dream, I could even smell the flowers. It was late at night and quite warm and humid. It was like I was walking through one of the famous gardens in a Spanish castle. I think the most famous one is the Alhambra. I love a piece of music about the Alhambra. It is a piano composition. I used to play this work, but have left the piano behind, with all the work I must do at my college and with my family obligations.
Anyway, as I was walking through the garden, a strange man joined me. I was initially afraid of him; however, he offered kind, assuring words that removed my fear. He talked about the importance of love in one’s family and picked a flower to show me how the petals of the flower were all interlaced, like the relationship between family members. This man seemed to come from some Asian country. Perhaps he was Indian. After offering a few words of encouragement about the time I was spending with my children, he suddenly was gone. I don’t know how he knew about my kids or about my struggle with finding time for my two special children. I spent a few more minutes walking through the garden. Then my mother suddenly appeared in the garden. She offered me a flower and soon disappeared herself. I started to cry in the dream and soon woke up. I was still crying.”
Sonya asked a very gentle question:
“Katherine, what do you think your inner-self was trying to tell you?”
Katherine answered:
“Obviously, the dream has something to do with encouraging me to spend more time with my children. But, you know, there was something else in this dream. And this something else led me to cry. I’m not sure what this something else is that my dream was trying to tell me.”
Sonya:
“Maybe it has something to do with the garden and the strong smell of the flowers. And it might have something to do with Spain and with the man you met in the garden. This whole dream seemed to be very “steamy” and verdant in the best sense of these words. You seem to have been caught up in the sensory experiences of this garden of the Alhambra. Krishnamurti often talked about strong sensory experiences as suggesting something about the power of love. And in your case, love seems to refer not just to your children but to your past life as represented by the piano composition that you played earlier in your life and by the appearance of your mother. Were you perhaps crying about what was lost in your life when you became an adult?”
