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July, 2021
11I go out of our house for a little while (Frances' and mine) one evening, and when I come back I find the front door wide open. I look for Fran and ask about the front door. She does not accept responsibility for it and says some people from across the street have been going in and out. I do not at all understand this, consider it an assault on our privacy, and go to another part of our large house and discover there what appears to be this other family moving in and getting settled, evidently with Fran's permission. One member of the other family is a cute, quiet girl, a teenager, maybe about 13-15 years old. She is playing with and petting our small white terrier dog, acting as if it is hers, this with our dog's enthusiastic endorsement. Even when the rest of the other family leaves briefly, perhaps to get more of their possessions, the teenage girl remains and keeps improving her relationship with our dog. As I better understand what is going on, it is apparent the girl and her family are adjusting as best they can to the sudden death of her grandfather, a gentleman who was the main provider for the family. Ours has seemingly become an emotional support dog for the girl. I am outraged at the whole situation and, out of the others' hearing, complain to Fran about her having OK'd these intruders (as I see them) coming in to take some kind of refuge in our house. I tell her if they take over my bathroom or make a bunch of noise in one of the bedrooms they've settled into, then I'll insist they leave. Upset as I am and despite my complaints, the fact is, though, if the others really have nowhere else to go, particularly their girl, while I may not at all like it, I probably won't force them out. As the dream ends, am feeling frustrated, overwhelmed, and that our lives have been turned upside down, invaded.
[Of Frances, I'd say she is my wife of 36+ years and with whom I have a good relationship. She is an excellent teacher and naturalist photographer. She gets along well with most everyone (at least with those other than a few in my birth family). In the dream her character, per Jungian analysis, is my anima, there to show, by example or counter-example, right feeling or attitudes. Clearly, she is a positive part of the whole of me reflected in my dreams. From her example, one might assume I am to cultivate further such attributes as curiosity, seeing things well just as they are, and a talent for how to "Win Friends and Influence People."
The small white dog, eager to make a fun relationship with the cute, quiet, young girl, reminds me of our last, quite playful, if at times also independent and standoffish, wire hair fox terrier, Puff, whom we had for over 16 years till May, 2020. She might represent unconditional love, emotional support, and fun for Little Phil, my precious inner child who likely could still use more play and nurturance.
Let's say the quiet, cute young girl might represent an earlier age anima, perhaps a Little Fran who, in more stressful circumstances, as yet lacks the take-charge, confident persona of the adult Frances.
The others in the dream do not stand out enough to say much about them. Rather, a couple things are evident from the setting and other circumstances. First, the real house in which Fran and I live is much smaller than this dream abode. In the dream there is enough space that, even if the small-self identity is uncomfortable with it, we can share, at least temporarily. One can say that there are in this big house of the larger self an array of resources that may come in handy when some parts of me need extra help. I'm reminded of the movie "As Good As It Gets" in which the Jack Nicholson character is at first dead set against any bother or intrusion from his "weird" neighbor, yet as the film progresses, in spite of himself, he becomes kinder, a nicer guy, one who can have more ordinary friendships or caring and can even reach out to assist with someone else's needs, and he becomes a richer, more complete person for it.
Another thing about the dream is the "problem" it presents: new developments that necessitate the ego's undergoing uncomfortable changes. There are perhaps, in my real life, situations that are challenging, potentially life altering, ones that seem overwhelming and frustrating, maybe even threatening to turn my life upside down. It could be as simple as concern about feeling badly last night, as if I had an infection, as a result of which I got little sleep, felt mildly feverish, and have been relatively weak today. There is also a mysterious pain in part of the right chest wall area. It has now been with me for about ten days or so and might just be from a little too much straining while doing yard work or having fallen against something and bruised the inter-costal musculature while going to the restroom in the dark. My inclination in much of my adult life, though, has been to think morbidly when detecting unexplained, negative sensations. What if this means I have bone cancer, for instance? Usually such concerns are readily put to rest by the feelings going away after awhile. Almost certainly that's what will occur this time too. However, if in fact there is a more serious condition, it has the possibility of turning my life upside down and necessitating giving up a lot of privacy as I'd have to consult and turn my future over to the intrusions and care of a variety of medical specialists.]
