Theme of the week

 Do you ever have recurring dreams? What was the stangest dream you ever had?

I get two regular recurring dreams. I call them my house dreams because they are both about houses but totally different apart from that.

The first I have had for years. In it my husband and I are planning a move and we are either looking round a potential house or have just moved into one. He is really happy with the move. I am not, but am trying to convince myself it is for the best. I tell myself things like – ‘It’s much more convenient to live here’, or ‘this really is a lovely living room’, but inside I am wishing I could stay at my own house.Then I wake up and I am at my own house and I feel really relieved.

I’m pretty sure I know where this dream comes from. When I was 14 my parents moved from my home town of Shrewsbury to Bognor Regis in Sussex. I didn’t want to move. It broke my heart to leave all of my friends. I am an only child so they were like family to me. I remeber protesting vigorously, and the rows with my mum whose dream it was to retire to the coast. I also remember a long talk with my dad who managed to convince me that the move would be great – I would be close to London. I always loved visiting there.

When we got there, though, it turned out awful. I didn’t settle in school and found it hard to make friends. I vowed to moved back to Shrewsbury as soon as I was old enough to do what I liked, but then Dad died leaving Mum alone and I was stuck there for years. It wasn’t until after I married that we moved back to this part of the country and I am now near enough to Shrewsbury to visit and see old friends. Funnily enough, though. The dreams started after we moved here, not when I was so unhappy.

The other recurrent dream happened for several years, starting about 20 years ago, but I haven’t had it for quite a while.

In this one I am visiting a house, sometimes a big house, a statetly home or a manor house, but sometimes a small house visiting friends. I have been there before, but this time I find a room I never knew existed. It is usually in the attic or somewhere high up.

The exception to this is one of the strangest dreams I have had. I found a celler with a stream running through it and a piano standing in the stream! I remember thinking that piano will get damp there – slight understatement that but it seemed quite logical in the dream!

I have read that finding a room high up in house that you didn’t know was there symbolises finding a new part of yourself. The dreams where I found the high up rooms did coincide with my going back to college as a mature student, so that makes sense. I really don’t know what the celler with the ‘damp ‘ piano means. I did used to play the piano when I was a child. I hardly ever play now as I just don’t have time for that and the guitar which is my real love. We still have the piano. It was my dad’s and I am sentimentally attatched to it. Maybe that’s it. . Maybe I feel guily because the piano is rather neglected, and I just made it a bit more dramatic in my dream!