It is not unusual for me to spend a few minutes when first waking up from this dream of illegal occupancy to reflect on the real-life time I spent in Gualala and the hosting I did at this home of family members, friends—and students. I briefly savored these memories and wondered if we could repurchase this home from the current owners. I then wake up a bit more and realized that we now live on the other side of North America from this California home and have absolutely no business considering the purchase of a home that we will never visit.
Natural Disaster
Frequently my previous home was hit by a flood, wind or tsunami. My home in Walnut Creek had an enclosed porch where not only was my bedroom located but also (on the other size of a wall-to-ceiling bookshelf) the office was located where I did all of my writing. In my dreams, a great storm would blow in and either rattle or shatter the windows of this porch. All of my writing would be blown away by this windstorm and I could never fall asleep in the bedroom portion of the porch.
My home in Gualala was located on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean. While there were many storms that blew in over the oceans and large waves pounded the shore, there was no way that the storms could threaten my well-built Gualala home, nor could waves ever reach our home on the hill that resided more than a mile from the ocean. Yet, in my dreams, the ocean was chewing up the hill on which my home was located. I was looking out over a steep cliff on which my home teetered precariously. The relentless storm was about to obliterate my home. I would usually wake up at this moment.
A variant on this nightmarish dream required that I create a new home that was located on the shore of an ocean. The ocean view from this home was lovely; however, I was soon facing a large wave that was racing in from the once serene ocean. This wave was going to destroy my home and probably take my life. I find that this particular variant on the Gualala dream is linked to actual fears in my life regarding large waves. I love to body surf and have done so riding waves on California, Hawaii and Maine beaches. The moments of “catching a wave” and skimming down the front side of the wave are splendid. However, the waves can sometimes be quite large. I either try swimming back to the shore (often unsuccessfully) or dip under the wave as it comes toward me (usually more successful). This same fear (as well as my enthrallment with the wave’s beauty and power) is replicated in my dreams of living in a seaside home that is about to be destroyed (can’t dip my home under the incoming wave).
Attach by Sinister Force
I walk from my home in Sycamore Illinois to the Main Street which is one block away from where my parents bought a house. As a child, I was always a bit weary of this short trip for I walked by a very “sleazy” bar where many drunks hung out. It was very dark inside the Bar, and the sounds of blurred voices rang out and frightened me.
Now, in my adult years, living many miles from Sycamore, Illinois, I have dreams of once again embarking on the dangerous trip to downtown Sycamore. However, when I now walk by the Bar, there are evil spirits that spring out of the dark recesses of the Bar and attack me. I have to run back home and only feel safe after closing the front door behind me. The evil spirits then appear at all of the windows around our Sycamore home. I am afraid to venture out.
