Scandalous Letter

Dear Peregrin,

OK. Another wacky dream I had just last night. (I've been having trouble sleeping just a little bit lately.) OK, the basis of the dream encircled around a 8-9 page letter written on a 6" x 9" memo pad (don't ask how I know that). The letter started in pencil, but ended in blue pen, which was used to emphasize the architectural drawings (which I'll explain in a moment). The letter was handwritten to two women, as if they were the same person. It was a love letter that was from this guy I've gone out with just 2 or 3 times, but who has expressed a ton of affection for me in real life, but in the dream, he was duplicitous, and the hurt feelings that were brought on by my accidentally finding this lost letter were akin to how I actually feel in real life about my ex who recently broke up with me.

The letter was found in a back seat of a car where T- was. Everyone close to me, family, close friends, family friends, knew about the letter and its contents. The later part of the letter expressed that T- didn't care for me anymore, and was even going so far as to put me down physically in a sexual manner, and comparing me to the intended of this letter. It was cruel. The earlier part of the letter was T- bragging about his add-on plans to his cottage, where he intended on meeting these two women. They were sketched blue prints.

Later in the dream, my father ends up trying to give me the letter, but the last pages that had the parts about me were missing. My mom was alive in this dream, and said that she admired my bravery (I actually ran in my house where I grew up without my clothes on!). I wanted to avoid receiving the letter and/or being confronted by my father's knowledge of this letter, so I ran to my bedroom, and along the way, closed many large doors behind me. By the time I got to my room, I recalled the scandal and secrecy of the letter, and attempted to contact T- by phone (as I've done with my ex in real life, to little avail). I left him a message, and he realized somehow that he had accidentally left a clue behihnd that revealed his lies and secrecy.

The strangest thing about this dream is, in some ways, it parallels my anxieties about my ex, but instead, I used someone who's never hurt me to play his part. Why could that be?

Thanks!

Liz

Good morning, Liz.

When a relationship goes sour, we cannot help but fear that the next one will do so as well. This could be the kind of anxiety that your dream reflected.

But it's also possible that the betrayal in your dream represents some other type of bad relationship in your life - not necessarily your love interest. It could refer to a professional situation (a 6x9 memo pad is commonly used in offices) or a real estate deal (the blueprints). Or any other relationship; these are only examples that I can see pointed to.

Your dream contains people who try to give you the truth, but you do all you can to avoid it. There are lots of situations where we avoid bad news - health springs to mind. Interestingly, your father only has an incomplete copy of the letter - it seems that those who are trying to herald you to the truth, don't know all the truth themselves.

This could be why your mother admires your bravery. While fleeing from the truth doesn't seem very brave (clothed or not), it takes a certain amount of courage to ignore rumors and half-truths. Even the letter's origins are circumstantial - found in a car where T- was known to be.

By the way, running naked through the house where you grew up could mean that you don't feel as if you need to hide from those who know you best.

It also seems significant that the letter is started in pencil and ended in pen (blue pen - indicating sorrow?) - as if written by two different people, perhaps. Since the pen part is missing from your father's copy, it could indicate that your new relationship doesn't necessarily have to end up like the old one.

Even though communication didn't help with your ex, I do think that it's the right course of action whenever you have doubts - certainly it's better than not trying to talk things out. If you've managed to identify the situation that people close to you are trying to warn you about, it may be best to confront the accused. Give them a chance to defend themselves or explain their actions - and possibly you can learn the real truth in the process.

Pleasant dreams (and try to get some rest!),

Peregrin