Have your animals shown up in your dreams? Mine have!

Dreams and animals are two of my favorite topics!

Chinese embroidery dragon peonies

I’ve worked on my dreams (called “dreamwork”) since the mid-nineties. I received a clear dream about a dragon and knew instinctively what the dream meant.

It was so insightful and helpful, I figured it was a sign from the Universe! I promptly jumped into the study of dreams and learned all I could so I could reap the benefits of what my dreams wanted to say about my life.

Everyone dreams!

Everyone dreams —it’s a physiological fact.  But most of us are too busy to remember our dreams. And we’re not taught to pay attention to them— no one tells us how useful they can be. I love dreams because they’re my own personal counselor, they know me intimately and want to help me with my life.

Want to know more? Read Jeremy Taylor’s Where People Fly and Water Runs Uphill. Fantastic book and Jeremy was a fantastic teacher!

The language of dreams

Dreams speak in a language of symbols, and I had to learn that language. It took time and effort.

For instance, when my kids were small, I did something called “dream incubation.” I asked a question just before I went to sleep asking to have a dream answer it. The question was, “Why am I yelling at the kids so much as we get ready for school and work?”

A house in Russia

In my dream, I was in a house in Russia visiting people. Dreams love puns. I played with this a while and figured out I was in a RUSHING house! There were too many things to get done each morning. So I started doing more small tasks the night before. Lo and behold, less yelling!

My animals have been dream symbols

Maribeth's dog TImmie

Timmie AKA “Saint Timothy of Aiea”

Sometimes my own animals showed up in my in my dreams— and my daydreams.

In one dream, my dogs Timmie and Missy were taking more runs and walks with me that they usually did. I already knew how important daily exercise was to my dogs. The dream used Timmie and Missy to symbolize my physical being, my body— its message was MY BODY craved more exercise. Yes, I started exercising more regularly.

 

Animal visitation dreams

My favorite animal dreams, though, are the “visitation” dreams— the ones when we’re sure the animal is visiting us in dreamtime to connect with us, spend some time with us, and show their love.

 

People visit us in our dreams; why not animals?

Almost every time I call my Aunt Norma to see how she’s doing, she just had a dream where my mom or dad visited her in a dream the night before (they’ve both passed on). She does not wish it; my parents have visited. It’s so great to know they’re still connected to us.

Many people see in their dreams animals who have passed away. This isn’t “wishful dreaming.” Their animal has taken the time to re-connect and remind them they’re still thinking of them.

 

A pet birthday party

guinea pig with birthday hatOne of my UConnect students shared her grade school son’s dream with me. They had recently lost one of their chickens to a predator. Everyone was upset about the loss.

“I wanted to let you know about Mark’s dream the night I hit a squirrel.  He said it was so fun (and I got in trouble at first for waking him out of it).  He said he never had a dream so vivid.

“[The guinea pig] Nibbles was having a birthday party. I asked who was invited. He said humans and animals were there, so many.  My friend’s guinea pig, who passed earlier this year, was also there.  He also said there were so many chickens, birds, and squirrels. I believe even a possum.  His old fish were also there.

“It made me feel like he brought in the animals after their deaths and reconciled with losing them.”

Isn’t it great that so many of the animals in Mark’s life showed up for Nibbles’ birthday party? Even the fish! This dream feels like a real gathering of beloved souls, a visitation rather than a symbolic dream.

My cat jumps into my dream

Black cat on winter jacket

And then there’s Shadow, our youngest cat. She joined the family in the fall of 2017. I was in California with attending an Animal Communication course when I received a text message from my husband, Charlie,

“I went to the pet store to buy cat food and came home with a cat.” Okay then.

Shadow showed up in my dreams while I was in California and has done it a couple of times since. Picture my dream as if you were watching a live play. All of a sudden, you notice a small black cat walking across the stage. Shadow! She wasn’t part of the dream, she was just curious and wanted to say hi! I fell in love with her before I ever met her in person!

 

Has your animal shown up in your dreams? Would love to hear your story!