A New Way Of Seeing
During preparation for a wilderness quest, I received a bit of wisdom from our guide. She encouraged us to stop often on the trek, turn 360 degrees, and slowly take in the location from every perspective. I need that guidance in my life. And I am seeing that the guidance in our dreams is providing a similar opportunity.
There are moments in our dreams when we’re observing rather than acting. A scene unfolds before us, and we can be sure it is unfolding on our behalf. Other times, we are part of the dream and the action is happening a short or long distance from us. I remember a dream of my mother. I write:
Mom is there; close to my face; I can see the pores of her skin.
In Natural Dreamwork, we can notice the element of distance in our dreams. Is the action far away or is it near? Are we observing or are we participating?
We can also slow down the action of the dream. In doing so, we have a greater chance to feel the moment of the dream and become aware of the perspective it is bringing. We have an opportunity to see the point of view of our dream ego. Our ego has a way of seeing from a place of woundedness. Over time and with repetition, this becomes a “practiced” way of seeing. Familiar. An already always way of seeing. That makes it difficult for a new way of seeing to break through.
Here is an example:
A bad man is chasing me, I’m running…man falls and has an epileptic seizure. I look and don’t help; take the opportunity to run. Somebody tells me he knows and wants to know why; he’s after me again...my heart pounding.
My dream ego is evident from the start. I describe the man as “bad,” and I’m sure he’s chasing me.
My dream practitioner invites me to slow the action down. This man chasing me falls and has a seizure. I do nothing to help and take off. My waking self doesn’t feel good about this. In the dream, “he knows and wants to know why.” It is only in slowing the action down--stopping and turning 360 degrees, taking in the moment from every perspective--that anything new occurs to me. What if I’m running from a man, rather than being chased? A man who is trying to reach me, to catch up to me. Who is this man? Look at what he does. He has an epileptic seizure in my presence…I get to see a body…vulnerable and out of control. Once I let that in to my heart, I’m seized by something greater than anything I can get from my “practiced” way of seeing. I witness the man’s vulnerability…a vulnerability he has the strength to show me. That brings me to ask: What would it be like to stop running from my vulnerability?
Our Dream Soul brings a new way of seeing.
Donna Marie Mazzola a passionate advocate for the potency of dreams and their ability to transform one’s waking life. It is her experience and belief that dreams offer moments of Sacred Encounter and bring Helpers who are incessantly and creatively tethering us to Soul. She is a Natural Dreamwork practitioner who offers both one-to-one and group sessions.