Recurring Dreams

The last few months, I have had a recurring dream. Usually I don't remember my dreams, but I always remember this one. The dream is not exactly the same every time, but it always has the same components. I am packing for a trip (somewhere) by plane and I'm running late. The dream always involves air travel, packing and lateness. This is what I think. The plane represents my soul, the packing is my spiritual readiness, the lateness a warning that I better get with it.

In my dream last night, I was going somewhere international (Heaven?), and at the last minute discovered that I didn't have a passport. Everyone knows you can't get a passport at the last minute. I was upset and wondering how I was going to get on the plane. I remember thinking I could still go as far as the farthest U.S. destination but not be able to travel on to the other country. (a stop in Purgatory?) My suitcase was still empty and the plane was leaving at 10:30. The clock said 10:15. I was panicking and trying to throw things together, still wondering what I was going to do about the passport and more importantly, how I was going to get there on time.

Well. If the passport is my "ticket" to Heaven, then it must represent whether I'm in a state of grace or not. Luckily, in the dream I do finally find my passport stuffed in an envelope, but when I pull it out, a bunch of wadded receipts and other unimportant papers fell out with it. If that is the state of my soul, I have some work to do. Those represent venial sins, possibly ones that I am not even aware of.

Being late to the airport could represent that I am not diligent enough in my spiritual efforts, such as just fitting them in when I can and if I don't have time then I don't get around to it that day. Such as the Rosary. I have been trying to be better at saying it daily, but it seems that always something gets in the way. The encouraging thing about the dream is that I had 15 minutes still. Maybe that represents the remainder of my life (however long that is) and I better get busy if I want to make that plane!

The dream included a friend who was also going on the trip and who was waiting on me. She was mostly packed and sitting around, but also not aware of the lateness. I remember telling her what time it was and then she jumped up and started grabbing her stuff. "We can still make it if we hurry! " The friend in my dream represents how each one of us is crucial to God's plan, and as the Body of Christ we constantly need each other's help in order to get to our destination.

I do think that dreams can communicate things to us, whether the message comes from our own consciences or from our Guardian Angel, or from God Himself. It is up to us to figure out the message and then to act on it.

I need to get going now. I have a plane to catch.