Change In Relationship Shows Up In Dream

Dear Nancy: This dream came during a time of great difficulty in my relationship with my partner. We are seeing a counselor but the difficulties between us still exist. Even though the dream was nothing more than an image, I feel it had great significance. - Eve

I am standing in front of a huge building that is several stories high. Work is being done on it, a renovation of sorts. As I look at it, I become aware all of the old stucco has been removed. I can see the wires or cords that held the stucco in place along the surface of the building. I know a new and different type of siding will be installed. I don’t know what type or what it will look like, just that it will be new.

Dear Eve: Dreams speak to us in puns and metaphors, and yours is a wonderful example.

Have you felt “stuck” in the problems of your relationship? Have you been “stuck” in old habits and beliefs? Peeling off the building’s old “stucco” is a perfect pun for removing the “stuck-ness” in your life!

Buildings in dreams are often symbols of ourselves. If the building is unkempt and crumbling, it may signify something in your life is falling apart. If the building is new and beautifully constructed, you probably feel good about your life. Of course, the dream’s action and other parts may provide other clues and insights.

The renovation in your dream is a typical sign of progress and healing in the language of dreams. It’s true that to improve or change a situation, we must change beliefs and behaviors. This is a kind of ripping away the building’s old stucco to make way for the new. You don’t know what type of siding will be used or what it will look like, but you do know it will be an improvement.

What do you want to change? It’s true we only have the power to change ourselves, but when we do everything around us changes.

I believe this dream is a confirmation of the work you have been doing. Hopefully, your relationship will also be rebuilt and healed in the process.

Tips for readers: There are many layers or meanings to every dream. In this column, however, there is usually only room to explore one or two possible meanings.

Each dreamer has his or her own personal associations for each symbol, and yet there is a universal language of dreams that goes beyond the boundaries of cultures, genders, societal beliefs and norms. This universal language is what unites all people of all races and beliefs. Carl Jung called it the “archetypes,” the universal language of the soul.

When you work with your dreams, remember to consider both your own personal associations with the symbols and what may be a more cultural or universal meaning. You may come up with two interpretations to the same dream, and they both may be right.

This column is intended as entertainment. But psychologists who work with clients’ dreams say that dreams can hold a tremendous amount of significance; a particularly disturbing or repetitive dream may indicate the need to see a therapist.

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