Hmm, I wonder...

I had that dream last night. You know the one. The teeth fallin' right out of your head dream. I hate that dream. And I must admit that it has left me feeling completely out of sorts today. Not out of sorts because I'm afraid of loosing my teeth (they seem pretty secure) but out of sorts because as most of us know the teeth falling out dream is a symbol of ones life being out of whack and man do I feel out of whack right now (a fact that I didn't admit to myself until this dream made it painfully clear).

I was reading on a dream analyzing site that when we have a dream such as this we should write down all of the events--such as setting, people, feelings--of the dream which will give us a better idea of what the dream is trying to tell us.

So here goes. I invite you to read the details of my teeth falling out dream as I remember it...

The setting of my dream took place at the home of some new friends we had made (these were not any of our true life friends, in appearance anyway but maybe symbolically they were--who knows) it was some kind of festive occasion but there was a general feeling of awkwardness in being there. Something was strange about the friendship but I don't remember or can't pinpoint what it was exactly. I remember their house was dark (dark furniture and carpet) without a lot of natural light, which only added to that feeling of awkward uneasiness.

I walked out into the back yard, bright with sunshine, to a picnic type setting. People were gathered there and children were playing, but I felt a little shy and unsure as I walked down into the yard to go stand beside my husband.

It was when I opened my mouth to speak to him that it happened. With the most gentle push of my tongue my teeth began to fall out. I felt them fill my mouth and I spit them into my hands. It was terrifying as the perfectly polished, brilliantly white strong teeth filled my hands to capacity.

I felt the fear in my eyes as I looked to Rick for help. I needed him to get me to the dentist quickly so my teeth could be saved and I expressed that I had felt that something was wrong with me for a long time. I had suspected that I had been very sick but had ignored it and now it had grown serious. I needed medical attention right away.

I walked into the house-- gingerly trying to balance the unmanageably large pile of teeth (still perfect and white) in my hands--and told my kids that we had an emergency and needed to hurry and leave. Hesitant to quit what they were doing, my kids continued to visit and play. As I began to plead with them again about the state of emergency we were in I lost hold of my pile of teeth and they scattered all over the floor, getting lost among the toys and clutter.

I crouched down and while frantically trying to retrieve them, I cried. I cried because I was falling apart, I had no control and it didn't seem to matter to anyone else but me. Of course upon seeing this, my kids rushed to my aid helping me find each tooth--but still feeling an overwhelming sense of urgency to get help-- I told myself to wake up and escape from this awful nightmare immediately, which I did.

So there you have it. My horrible dream. Feel free to analyze away (if you read the whole thing--wow that's a long post). And maybe, just maybe, I'll tell you what I think it means later.

Do you ever write down and or analyze your dreams?

Still swimming...

"The same God that placed that star in a precise orbit millennia before it appeared over Bethlehem in celebration of the birth of the Babe has given at least equal attention to placement of each of us in precise human orbits so that we may, if we will, illuminate the landscape of our individual lives, so that our light may not only lead others but warm them as well."
~Neal A. Maxwell

Last week was a time to vacation, this week a time to reflect. If I could bring just a portion of the light and warmth that my Savior blesses me with each and every day to others my joy would be full. It is the greatest desire of my heart, one that--because of my human frailties-- too often gets neglected, but one that I will never stop striving to accomplish.

Wish me luck... (please)

Truth be told, you're pretty awesome...

I found an old blog post of mine, written in March of 2008 and thought, "Hey this kind of sums up what I was talking with my sister about last night." So even though I was getting ready to write an entirely different post, I think I'll share this instead.

In the old post I was talking about how I had just returned from a writer's conference. I mentioned a few things I had learned, but the following is what I want to share with you today...

"...Another principle we discussed is how truth is full of light, peace and joy. Truth does not leave us feeling sad, empty or depressed. For every lie there is an opposite truth. So if Satan tells me the lies that I'm not good enough, that I can't do it, that I'm not of worth. There is an opposite truth that I am amazing, capable and of infinite worth. The lies fill me with darkness, the truth with light. It's a simple concept, but it holds such power. Satan never wants us to realize just how glorious we are. He wants to keep us trapped in his lies, but if we'll seek the spirit of truth we'll know that we are worth so much more than we ever imagined."

The lies fill us with darkness, the truth with light. It's so simple, so powerful and so TRUE. Truth does not leave us feeling sad, empty or depressed about ourselves. Truth empowers us to change. Day by day, little by little we keep fighting a good fight and we become who we want to be if we allow truth to penetrate our hearts then plug our ears and say, "La, la, la I'm not listening." to the lies that seek to oppress and destroy us.

Also found in an old blog post was this questioned that had been presented to me by the spirit during a difficult time in my life...

"How long are you going to let the father of lies deceive you? How long are you going to allow him to tell you that you are less than you are? Walk with boldness. You are a daughter of God, and as a daughter of God, you can do anything."

WOW.
So say it with me won't you...
"La, la, la I'm not listening"
and lets get out there and do some good because as daughters (and sons) of God we CAN do anything.