Issue 117, May 2008
Opportunity
©Jane Teresa Anderson, May 2008
Life is full of opportunity. Even when it doesn’t feel like it. Especially when it doesn’t feel like it.
So how can you choose and make the most of the opportunities surrounding you every day, if you can’t see or feel them? Your dreams are a good place to start since they reflect they way you see your waking life and how you feel about it. With a little training, you can learn to look at your dreams from a slightly different angle so that the opportunities that have been invisible to you suddenly come into clear focus.
Follow these examples to see how it’s done, then apply what you have learned to your own dreams.
DREAM 1
Callum dreamed he couldn’t find his car. He had parked it on the street, but when he returned there was just an empty space where his car had been.
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The first step is to ask, ‘Where’s the opportunity in the dream?’
One opportunity is to enlist people to help him find his car. Another opportunity is to fill the empty space with a better car, or a motorbike, a helicopter, or a pair of running shoes to get fit while going places.
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The second step is to ask, ‘Which situation, in my life, does this dream remind me of?’
Callum’s dream reminded him of how disoriented he was feeling. He had just completed the second day of a new two week training course at work, and he was beginning to question the way he had presented himself over the years to his clients. His confidence was wavering, and he wasn’t sure where he wanted to go from here. At the same time, he could already feel a change within as a result of the first two days of training, and knew he wouldn’t be able to go back to his previous methods. The car - so familiar to him for many years, like his approach to his work - had disappeared in his dream, leaving an empty space and a feeling of powerlessness.
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The last step is to apply the opportunities listed in step 1 to the life situation identified in step 2:
The first opportunity was to enlist people to help him find his car. This translates as Callum asking for help to reconnect with his old and comfortable ways of doing things. Perhaps the training wasn’t for him; perhaps a return to his familiar comfort zone would be more suitable. Callum didn’t choose this opportunity.
The second opportunity was to fill the empty space with a new and better way of getting places. Callum chose this opportunity. He completed the training course and learned new ways of getting ahead in his work and his life. It was only at the end of the course that he could see that to approach work in new way first meant ‘losing’ the old way. You have to create the space for the new and better way of doing things. It can feel a bit disorienting when the old, familiar ways of doing things have gone and you’re left staring at the empty space in your life.
While Callum was completing his training course, he visualised his dream ending in a different way. He visualised turning up to where he’d parked his old car and finding, in its place, the kind of car he’d really love to drive. He then visualised getting into that beautiful new car and driving it confidently. This is a dream alchemy practice. Doing this on a daily basis helped cement Callum’s readiness to welcome the new opportunities the training course was offering him. He made the change and graduated successfully.
DREAM 2
I once dreamed I was rowing a boat with two young boys as passengers. Suddenly the boat flipped backwards and both boys fell into the lake and disappeared. I woke up feeling devastated, knowing the boys must be dead.
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The first step is to ask, ‘Where’s the opportunity in the dream?’
There are two main opportunities here. One is to face the loss, no matter how devastating, and learn from the mistake by keeping sight of what is precious to me in the future rather than let things get out of balance. The other opportunity is to rewind the dream and replay it, this time keeping the rowing boat steady and delivering the boys to their destination.
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The second step is to ask, ‘Which situation, in my life, does this dream remind me of?’
At the time of the dream, I had written two new books, one of which was to be published in the US. I had begun to feel uncomfortable about the publisher and was on the point of withdrawing my book. The way the boat back-flipped in the dream reminded me of the back-flip I was contemplating in withdrawing my book. This made me realise that the two young boys were my two young books, and that my unconscious view was that the back-flip, if I made it, would feel devastating and the opportunity to publish either book would be lost. Of course my dream reflected my fears about what would happen if I back-flipped, not what might actually happen. My dream showed me my fears.
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The last step is to apply the opportunities listed in step 1 to the life situation identified in step 2:
The first opportunity on offer was to face the loss and learn from the mistake by keeping sight of what is precious rather than letting things get out of balance. This translated to my situation as facing losing my rights to publish my book if I withdrew it from the publisher and learning from this mistake by keeping my values in my sight for future books, and keeping things in balance. I didn’t choose this opportunity.
The second opportunity was to rewind the dream and replay it, this time keeping the rowing boat steady and delivering the boys to their destination. This translated to my situation as recognising that my dream reflected my fear, and the outcome of my fears if I let them overwhelm me, and to replay the situation with a sense of steadiness instead of fear, and a firm conviction in delivering my books to their destination – which was publication in the best possible way.
I chose the second opportunity. I started by reinforcing my decision and my steadiness by visualising the replay version of the dream, rowing the boys safely and steadily to their destination. This is a dream alchemy practice. I then withdrew my book from the publisher with certainty, not fear. As ensured by my dream alchemy practice, this went well. The publisher understood my concerns. The book, 101 Dream Interpretation Tips, was published successfully five months ago. There are currently 33,000 copies in print, and this number is steadily rising. The second book is also alive and well and will be published in correct timing further down the track.
DREAM 3
Larelle dreamed she was back at school about to sit a test she hadn’t studied for, and she was worried she wouldn’t pass.
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The first step is to ask, ‘Where’s the opportunity in the dream?’
One opportunity is to ask to be excused the test, and to sit it at a more suitable time allowing for study. Another opportunity is to give the test a go, and see if the right answers come naturally, boosting her confidence. Another opportunity is to walk away from the test, to embrace life’s adventure without needing a certificate.
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The second step is to ask, ‘Which situation, in my life, does this dream remind me of?’
Larelle’s dream reminded her of her new role as a mother. Her baby was born six weeks before her dream, and she was continually feeling under scrutiny by her parents and relatives over how she was handling her baby. She felt like a child herself, being tested by the adults in her life.
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The last step is to apply the opportunities listed in step 1 to the life situation identified in step 2:
Which opportunity would you choose if you were in this position? Larelle chose to walk away from the test and embrace life’s adventure without needing a certificate. Her dream made her realise that she was allowing her parents and relatives to judge her according to their standards and ideals. She chose to learn about motherhood on the job, to gain wisdom through personal experience. She made this easier for herself by doing a dream alchemy practice where she visualised telling the dream teacher she didn’t need to sit any tests, and where she left the school feeling adult, excited and confident about her future.
Be guided and inspired by these three examples to look to your dreams to identify the many opportunities that life offers you. Even when it doesn’t feel like it. Especially when it doesn’t feel like it. In fact, your life abounds with opportunity, and the choices are all yours.
Jane Teresa Anderson
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