at the entrance to the Native American section at Arizona State Museum
Although I know I should, I don’t keep a dream journal alongside my bed. I remember most of them, but sometimes a vivid dream, which I wake in the middle of the night remembering, will be gone by morning. I count on my brain remembering their energy.
With a remembered, interesting dream, I head for an online Dream Dictionary to see if it has a message from the muse or my subconscious.
With May’s full moon, my dreams were particularly vibrant, colorful and unique for me.
The hummingbirds were all around. When my cat caught one, I got it away, assessed it was unharmed, and freed it. It flew to land on my shoulder.Since hummingbirds flit around our house all the time, to dream of them isn’t unexpected. The unique part was its landing on my shoulder. Surely, that would have a message-- not that I found. I even went so far as to look for birds landing on your shoulder. Apparently, that doesn’t happen often enough in a dream for a meaning. They did though have one, which if this ever happens to me I’ll be sure and remember-- if you dream a bird got its beak stuck in your neck, it means you have been gossiping too much!
In books, when it fits, I have used my own dreams as dreams for a character. Some of my dreams are like watching a movie with characters and plots. One gave me an opening scene, and I saw what the hero looked like, for a contemporary romance that became Her Dark Angel. Another led to my paranormal, Diablo Canyon. If a movie dream interests me enough, they don’t all, I spend the usual time figuring out the flesh of the story as they are very much bare bones.
Some years back in a dream, I was told I had been a Yaqui in an earlier life. The people in the dream (none of whom do I know) told me that they were my family and in the next room was my Yaqui soul mate. The dream ended before I went through that door.
My interest in the Yaqui culture has led to collecting books, like the two below, on their view of their place in the cosmos:
Yaqui Deer Songs Maso Bwikam, a Native American Poetry
by Larry Evers & Felipe S. Molina
Yaqui Myths and Legends by Ruth Warner Giddings
The Yaqui concept of the five enchanted worlds and their teaching regarding seatakaa (more on it in Yaqui Deer Songs) are at the heart of their culture even today when many of them practice Catholicism but have not left behind rituals like the Deer Dance.
from the Yaqui section in the Arizona State Museum
Yaqui characters and their beliefs have been in three of my Arizona historicals— Tucson Moon, Arizona Dawn, and the recently written and due to be released this summer, Aztec Moon.
As happens to me a lot, after I wrote this blog, I had a dream that seemed perfect for a blog on dreams. I debated changing this one but then opted instead to put it into my regular blog where it will be up the 23rd. If you are also into dreams and how they can be silly or sometimes lead somewhere, check it out-- Rainy Day Thoughts
How interesting, Rain. I also often have vivid dreams but haven't used them in a book. I'm glad to know about the Dream Dictionary. Thanks for sharing with us.
ReplyDeleteI often dream parts of my books. I love the titles of your books and that you use a dream dictionary. I wonder what would have happened if you would have walked into the next room to find your Yaqui soul mate.
ReplyDeleteMy dreams often end inopportunely ;). Maybe it was my husband. The interesting part for me was it came before my stronger interest developed in the Yaquis. I knew of them, of course, living in Tucson off and on but little about their religious beliefs until later.
ReplyDeleteThe muse might explain our dreams ;) Steering us to directions that we need to go-- although a lot of my dreams are full of gibberish that seems logical in the dream but when I wake, I'm going-- huh! lol
I'm an exception, I guess. I rarely have dreams. When I do they are vivid at the time and once in a while I'll remember it after I'm awake. I've never heard of a dream dictionary. It would be interesting considering I have a deceased grandmother enter my amateur sleuth's dreams. Good post!
ReplyDeleteHow interesting! Looking forward to the blog about dreams.
ReplyDelete