YOU CAN'T TELL THE SAME DREAM TWICE

Listening to the dream

The first task is to for the dreamer to tell the dream. That sounds simple and obvious – they tell the dream once and that's it.

In practice, there is so much to tell that the dreamer can't get it all out in one go. The first telling of the dream -- very important – brings out one description. It often has a breathless quality to it..

"There was a man who was chasing me".

If you ask the dreamer to tell the dream again, it will almost certainly be longer. More detail that wasn't important enough to come out in the first telling will occur.

"There was a man who looked like my uncle who was chasing me".

We now know a little bit more but this raises more questions than it answers:

• Where were they?
• Why was the uncle chasing the dreamer?
• Which uncle?
• What was it that told the dreamer this man was like the uncle?
• What would happen if the uncle had caught up with the dreamer?

These are all questions that might come to mind as we listen. It is still far too soon to be asking questions. Ask the dreamer to tell the dream again and you'll get more answers without asking any questions.

"We were in a shopping mall (aha! Now the dreamer is getting their breath back) and I noticed my Uncle Jack. He was stealing a bracelet in the ladies jewelry department. He saw me and knew that I'd give him away"

This time, the detail about being chased has been left out. It's not forgotten just that so much new material has come out that the dreamer is kind of overwhelmed. Let him/her take a breath and tell the dream again. If the chase part of the dream doesn't come back on this next telling, you can prompt them.

Questions to ask about the dream:

What did it feel like while you were running away

Why do you think the man was chasing you?