Death and Dreams

I recently reviewed my blog posts to see which ones garnered the most interest. I was a bit surprised to see that my post titled Dreams and the Fear of Death on March 16, 2018, received more than three times as many views as the next most popular post, which was Some Common Dream Themes.

Because of this interest in dreams related to death, I decided to expand on the earlier post in this one. I hope I can help alleviate the fear that many people feel when thinking about their death. Death to most people represents the unknown—and we often fear what is unknown. Despite religious teachings, nothing concrete is known about what happens after our physical death. Does awareness continue in some way? Do we reincarnate and experience another life on this earth? If we do not come back to this earth, but our existence continues, what form does it take? What do we spend our time doing? Or is there a sense of time at all? Even in The New Testament, Jesus does not elaborate about the exact nature of the life with him in eternity.

Many scientist have looked for some evidence of our continued existence, but have found none. But perhaps they have been looking the wrong place. They expect to see physical evidence, but there is no reason to believe that evidence of our continued existence after death will be physical—at least in a way that can currently be measured.

My own belief of our continued existence after death came about because of my studies of Edgar Cayce and my own dreams. The Edgar Cayce readings enlarged my view of the universe and the nature of humankind. I knew that much of what he said was true because I experienced it in my own life. Despite my scientific background, I didn’t care what scientists thought because I knew what was true. While the scientific community argued over the existence of psychic phenomena, I could see my future ever day in my dreams from the prior night. And the paranormal became normal.

Edgar Cayce described death as a simple process that can happen as quickly and easily as “the snip of a ribbon.” I believe that many people who pass over are confused for some time because they don’t realize they have died. In my dreams after my mother died, I visited her in a hospital room. She didn’t realize that she had died. When she was told, her initial reaction was fear. I tried to comfort her, but she had to adjust to her new circumstances and reality. People who are considered “sensitives” often will see the dead, especially family members who have recently passed.

Some scientists say visions of the dead are all a creation of the mind in an attempt to alleviate our fear of death or sense of loss of a loved one. But they are also the same scientists who will say psychic phenomena don’t exist, despite a wealth of evidence that it does.

Clearly, when we die the brain will cease to function as its blood supply ends. Its physical cells will begin to die. But I do not believe the mind and the brain are the same thing. I believe we need a physical brain to function properly within the framework of a physical world. We need the brain to process all of the sense information to allow us to function and warn us of dangers. A mind independent of the brain will not be able to make sense of a physical body in relation to its environment. But I believe that only part of the mind is involved with the functioning of the brain. I believe the remaining part of the mind is attuned to other realities.

Edgar Cayce described the mind as consisting of three parts: the conscious mind, the subconscious mind, and the superconscious mind. The conscious mind is our normal aware mind, the subconscious mind similar to that described by psychologists, and the superconscious mind the part that has never left its Creator. Some may consider it related to the collective unconscious of Carl Jung. These are not clear partitions or divisions, but more like aspects of the one mind.

When we dream, the dreams can come from the subconscious and different levels within it, or as divine guidance or visions from the superconscious. Sometimes our dreams are about our daily struggles and concerns and are close to surface consciousness. At other times, we may tune into concerns of others such as family and friends, or we may see future events such as a job change or health issue. And on some occasions, we may have a divine vision to inspire or console us.

Edgar Cayce said that when we die the subconscious becomes the conscious in our new existence, and the superconscious becomes the subconscious. So based on this view, we don’t just join our Creator, or pass to eternal damnation, but instead we face an existence based on what we have built into our deeper levels of consciousness while on the earth. We face ourselves. A well-known Edgar Cayce quote is “All you may know of heaven or hell is within your own self.”

If you want to discover the contents of your subconscious, I believe that dreams provide the way. Our dreams show us the contents of our subconscious; they reveal whether or not we are in accord with our superconscious. If you are afraid to look now, you may not have any choice later. And you may have lost opportunities to bring light into your consciousness while on this earth.

I do not believe that someone suddenly becomes aware and enlightened after death. I think we become what we are when all the contents of our subconscious become visible. We dwell on the level we have built for ourselves. We have an opportunity in this life to pass over as a happy and forgiving soul, or we can pass over as one filled with conflict and hate. The choice is ours. I don’t think the occurrence of death changes who we are.

Some who believe in reincarnation may think that they’ll postpone any hard choices or changes in behavior until the next life; they’ll revel in this life and all its pleasures without any regard for consequences. Any thoughts about making better life choices are postponed for another life. My comment to those is the following: if they believe in reincarnation, what makes them think the next life will afford them the same opportunities as this one. It could be much worse with any progress painful in the extreme.

I also think that dreams provide us with a sense of what existence is like outside of the physical body. Things are much more plastic with change initiated by our thoughts. We can travel effortlessly and are free of all of the restrictions of a physical body. But are we happy? As stated above, I think the answer is determined by what we have built into our consciousness. Jesus said, “… the kingdom of God is within you.” Why are we always looking outside of ourselves?

Over the course of my lifetime, my dreams number in the tens of thousands. I cannot begin to document all of my dreams and explain their meaning. In my books, I have provided a small selection of dreams that I believe are representative of the various types of dreams I encountered. My dreams have been a marvelous adventure. Some of my days now are quiet and uneventful, spent working on a book or blog post. However, my dreams of the previous night may have had me engaged in multiple adventures and paranormal contacts with others. Sometimes when I awake, I am glad to have the day to rest from my dream activities. Your nightly dreams can be the most creative part of a twenty-four-hour period.

I believe I have sometimes visited those who have passed over. The visits are usually brief encounters, but do provide a sense of the continuation of life after physical death. However, I caution here that most encounters in dreams with those who have died are not encounters with the actual person. The person in the dream is symbolic of someone we have encountered or will encounter who reminds us of the actual person in some way. I think we can only know the difference based on the nature of the dream and interaction with the person in the dream. What I consider my actual encounters with the dead have been with people who recently passed.

As humans, we have the ability to reflect on our lives and review the past. We assess the deluge of sense information and from it build a picture of the world. However, despite our best attempts to see clearly, we also filter out unwanted, but important, information and distort what we see by our beliefs, which may not have much relationship to reality.

The senses are only part of the complete picture. Our subconscious is also sending us information through intuition and dreams. If we ignore them, we are not seeing the complete picture. We are cut off from the tremendous source of creativity that is our inner being. Enlightenment or becoming whole is the process of uniting and bringing into harmony the internal and external so we become consciously aware of both and complete as a human being.

If you want to have an experience that will convince you of the reality of life after death, look to your dreams. Pray about it and ask to have an experience that will leave you with the knowledge and understanding that life continues after your physical death. Have faith and it will happen.

Life without Unnecessary Fear

Is your life free of fear? And by fear, I mean that unpleasant, and sometimes disabling, emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is going to cause you discomfort or pain. I think most people want to feel good, and they want to avoid distress. Of course, the person or thing causing the fear may not be a real threat. Nevertheless, if you think it is a threat, that thought may be enough to induce a sense of fear. The mind and body will respond to imagined threats as well as real threats.

I think few of us will claim that we have never been afraid. Sometimes fear is a good thing because it causes the body to marshal its reserves to thwart the threat in the best way possible. If your life is in danger from another person, flight may be the proper response.

But how do you stop the fear that is a result of all of the imagined threats. In this, I include the fear of failure, rejection, loneliness, poverty, sickness, old age, criticism, and a host of other things that you may worry about. How can you live free of this type of fear?

I think that much of the fear comes from one’s not knowing what tomorrow will bring. An optimist may expect tomorrow to bring the best and that life will only improve. However, many people reflect on all the bad things that might happen, and they fear the unknown—the future that they think is not yet written. Only, the future is written, and you can see your future if you look. And if the future is undesirable, you can change that probable future into the future you want.

The answer to seeing the future you are building is found in your dreams. Your dreams will show you where your path leads. And threats will not come out of nowhere, completely unexpected; you will be forewarned, giving you an opportunity to avoid many of them. And for those you cannot avoid or change, you will have time to prepare yourself psychologically for the coming event.

I am not suggesting that it is easy to eradicate unnecessary fears. It requires effort on your part, but there is a definite comfort in knowing that a presence is watching out for you and constantly advising you about the proper course of action. This presence is within you and speaks to you through flashes of insight or intuition, and speaks to you nightly through your dreams. That presence never leaves you because it is part of you—it is a deeper layer of consciousness that is not normally accessible to your conscious awareness.

Some will say, “I would rather not know.” To me, that is like trying to navigate the world without sight. Blind people do it with the help of guide dogs and other resources, but life is much more difficult without the sense of vision. However, even with sight, the things you think you see are blurred by your prejudices and beliefs. You don’t see reality; you only see your own version of reality. The external world is a world of energy. Signals are generated by the retina of the eye from light photons impinging on it, from the external energy that is the world. The picture of what you see is created in your brain from the electrical signals flowing along the optic nerve to the brain. Your brain creates what you accept as the real world.

When it comes to judging another’s motives or intentions, your own conditioning and beliefs will determine what you see. The conscious mind is limited in what it can determine and “see” as reality because you cannot see without some degree of bias and filtering. But with the help of unconscious portions of the mind, a greater reality can be seen. And many of the biases and inhibiting beliefs can be recognized and corrected before they seriously limit the quality of your life.

If you want to be free from unnecessary fear, unite the conscious and unconscious aspects of your mind. And the way to do this is to understand your dreams. The famous psychiatrist Carl Jung said that we couldn’t be whole without that integration or joining of the conscious and unconscious, which he called individuation.

Fighting the Current

Going with the flow is not always the best advice, especially if the flow is moving in a way that is destructive or immoral. The majority is not always right, as we saw in Germany leading up to and during World War II. Adolph Hitler enjoyed the broad support of the German people, but they were misguided. It often requires great courage to take a position that is counter to the flow of events and in opposition to the majority. Some courageous individuals in Germany paid for their opposition to Hitler with their lives.

However, the flow, especially as it pertains to your individual life, may be a different matter. Many people spend their lives bucking the current that is trying to take them in the right direction. They develop a perspective on what they want or expect to happen and refuse to adapt to actual circumstances. Any signals that run counter to what they want are ignored, filtered out without any real consideration. They don’t see reality: they only see their personal desires and cannot relate to anything that conflicts with them. If their personal agendas are in harmony with their souls’ desire, their lives will benefit. However, if they are not, they will seem to be in continuous conflict.

When I managed people in my corporate life, I often encountered those individuals who always tried to swim against the current and make things difficult for themselves and others. Their careers suffered, and they would blame everything and everyone except themselves for their lack of success. Those individuals always chose to fight the current and saw themselves as taking a stand as individualists, even when there was no cause or inequity to oppose.

So how do we know if we are fighting the current when we should be letting it move us in its direction? My answer is that our dreams offer the best counsel available. And they are free of charge. Our nightly dreams provide feedback on how we are doing. They provide encouragement to continue on a certain path if it is right for us, and they provide warnings if we are on the wrong path. Dreams also help us expand our capabilities and grow as individuals. We may be on a path that is positive, but not one that best utilizes our talents and abilities. Dreams will help us open up our potential and encourage us to expand our horizon.

Many may not want to acknowledge it, but we create our own lives. Although some people enter this life with serious challenges, even those people can decide how they will respond to their circumstances. If you don’t believe this, read the story of Helen Keller. Most of us do not have challenges that great. However, we make decisions each day that place us on a path that will inexorably take us to experience life in a certain way, a way determined by our thoughts and beliefs.

There are many reasons that people have for not paying attention to their dreams, which are reviewed in my books. For the purpose of this post, I point out that one of the main reasons is the tendency of people to take the path of least resistance. It is just easier to ignore them. It is much like diet and exercise. I think few people are unaware of the importance of diet and exercise for maintaining a healthy body. Yet, evidence is overwhelming that the majority of Americans are largely ignoring the advice of nutritionists and health experts. It is just easier to stop at the fast food restaurant or flop in front of the TV and tell yourself you will go to the gym or health club another day.

Dreams will jar you out of that sense of complacency. You will see the results of your lifestyle, sometimes in a very vivid and shocking way. But shock may be what your subconscious is trying to achieve to get your attention. Now, if you are OK with cutting yourself off from that information, then don’t complain later in life that some disease occurred without warning, and if you had only known you would have made some lifestyle changes.

The deeper levels of consciousness are always trying to bring our lives into balance and steer us onto a path that is beneficial for our body and mind. But we must learn to listen by interpreting our dreams and then act upon the guidance we receive. The help that so many seek is right there in plain sight. No one separates us from our internal wisdom except ourselves.

Dreams About Your Health

I believe that we all possess one of the best sources of help for maintaining good health. This source is free of charge and readily available to everyone. Of course, I am referring to our nightly dreams, which constantly monitor the state of our physical and mental health.

I was reminded of this by something I read earlier this month. The publication of a new comprehensive medical study warned people that the consumption of three or more eggs a week could be dangerous for their heart health. This study was reported on by CNN on March 15, 2019. (Three or more eggs a week increase your risk of heart disease and early death, study says By Susan Scutti, CNN Updated 5:10 PM ET, Fri March 15, 2019.)

The study reversed the position of doctors who had previously said that consumption of three of more eggs a week was not a problem and people should not be concerned. In my book The Inner Guru, I mention a dream I had many years ago warning me to limit my egg consumption to two eggs a week. When I read about the position of doctors last year on egg consumption, I wondered why I had that dream because they said it was not a concern. Now I know the answer. My dream was correct, despite the position of many in the medical community at that time.

Your subconscious mind is aware of everything that occurs within your body and knows how various foods affect your physical health. You simply have to learn how to listen to the messages from your subconscious. This source of wisdom is not limited to food, but also applies to any medicines that you take. The unconscious levels of mind are always trying to steer us to a path that is healthy, both physically and mentally. People spend huge sums of money to get advice that is readily available to them from their dreams. If you want to have good health and prosper, learn to interpret your dreams.

For most people, I believe the way to good health is simple: get an adequate amount of sleep, eat healthy, have regular exercise, develop a positive outlook, and reduce stress in your life. Your dreams will provide feedback on how you are doing in each area. And they will help you avoid serious illnesses that could have been prevented with simple adjustments to your behavior.

If you ignore your dreams, you may be living under the delusion that everything is fine when it is not. People often convince themselves that they have healthy habits because they really don’t want to face the truth. But the truth is much easier to deal with when there is still time to change. When the heart attack suddenly occurs or you are diagnosed with cancer or some other serious, and potentially deadly, disease, the treatment becomes more challenging and has a greater impact on your quality of life than taking steps for prevention would ever have.

Thoughts Are Things

Most of us are aware that our personal information is often captured and shared without our permission or knowledge. Sometimes this is a result of someone hacking our computer or mobile phone, but sometimes it is due to carelessness on our part. And even if we are not careless and have good security, it is difficult to avoid putting certain personal information at risk. You may have been required to supply your bank, insurance company, doctor, and others with personal information that you would not want available to the public.

Some people aren’t concerned and will willingly post the most personal and intimate information for all to see. People exchange or post intimate videos about themselves and nude photos are frequently exchanged. Even for those who would never reveal such information, from social networking, one could build a detailed profile about how many people spend their days. Just by following someone’s Facebook posts during the course of a day, one can get a good idea of their activities for that day.

I once had a discussion with a corporate lawyer about protecting the confidentiality of some information related to a software product my group developed and supported. He said, “The best way is to not disclose the information to anyone.” He went on to say that he realized that it may not be possible, but the fewer people who knew, the better. His point was that regardless of signed agreements, the risk increases dramatically each time another person becomes privy to the information.

If you really want something to be a secret, tell no one. You may think, surely I don’t mean spouses or partners, or perhaps close friends. You have to decide for yourself. But I am reminded of all the stories I heard discussed over the years in the office about someone’s spouse or person they were dating. I am certain that the subject of the conversation would not have wanted some of the information disclosed that was freely shared with coworkers.

At this point, you may wonder what this has to do with thoughts. Well, thoughts are things and are not private. They have a reality that is often transmitted and shared, even though they are not normal sounds or words. Edgar Cayce, the great 20^th century psychic said, “thoughts are things.” They have an electromagnetic reality that can be observed and felt by others. If you are working with your dreams, you will sometimes have a dream in which you are “listening” to another’s thoughts. And another person may be dreaming about some secret of yours. I was quite shocked when this first happened to me. Another person who was just starting to remember her dreams, innocently asked me what a dream about me meant, not realizing that it revealed something I wanted kept secret.

Our thoughts radiate out to others and have an impact. You may interact with someone, and each time you have an uneasy feeling about that person. You search your mind, but can’t find anything you or they have said to create the awkwardness. But the thoughts don’t have to be spoken. If this person is sending you critical or unpleasant thoughts, your subconscious will pick them up and you are left with an uneasy feeling without knowing why. Likewise, the same applies to them if you are the one generating the critical thoughts.

The point is that our thoughts affect other people, not just ourselves. Your thoughts may not be powerful enough to physically harm another person; otherwise, we would have an epidemic of injuries. Nonetheless, they can create feelings of trust and comfort, if they are pleasant, or feelings of aversion, if they are unpleasant. If we harbor thoughts of hate towards another, we are sending real energy to that person that will be received and interpreted by them on a subconscious level. And if that person is already experiencing mental problems, it becomes one more thing they have to deal with.

Your thoughts are not private. I have heard people say that they will only share a portion of themselves; they keep a part of themselves as a protected area that they would never share with anyone. Unfortunately, for them, that is an illusion. Thoughts are things that radiate out into the universe. They do not have the ability to prevent certain thoughts from escaping their individual mind. All minds are connected, regardless of their desire to isolate a part of themselves from all other people.

Thoughts matter and create the life you experience. If you are unhappy with your life or current circumstances, examine your thoughts, which include the memory of your dreams. The solution to your problems lies there.

Climate Change and Weather

Previously, I have written about dreams of climate change and catastrophic weather that may be attributed to climate change. I think we are now in a period when even the deniers are beginning to have second thoughts. The recent fires in California fueled by warm temperatures and dry conditions are said to be the worst in the state’s history in terms of loss of life and the damage done. The earlier hurricane Michael that hit the Florida Panhandle and destroyed Mexico Beach was the worst in history experienced in that area. And we are hearing similar reports from around the world where catastrophic weather is the worst in recorded history. I have said before in previous posts that my dreams indicate the weather will get worse for many years yet.

In my books, I discuss some maps based on the dreams of Gordon-Michael Scallion. The maps provide a possible future that he saw in his dreams. Recently, I reviewed some maps called “I Am America” produced from visions and information received by Lori Toye. They also show a view of the possible future. The Toye map showing North America after all the changes are completed is similar, but not identical, to the one produced by Gordon-Michael Scallion. All of the maps target the year 2000 or shortly thereafter as when most of the changes will have occurred. Obviously, this did not happen so many think the maps are nonsense.

You can see what the effects to North America would be if all the ice melted in a National Geographic map at https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2013/09/rising-seas-ice-melt-new-shoreline-maps/. While not as dramatic in the western United States as the maps of Toye and Scallion, the effects to the East Coast are equally cataclysmic. Both prophets indicate the actual future geography is up to humans and is still being written. Were the events shown in their maps avoided or just delayed 20 years? Recent occurrences suggest that some of the changes that their maps depict may now be beginning in earnest.

On the internet, I have seen a question raised about who produced the first map. A Wikipedia article indicates that the Lori Toye map resulted from her visions in 1988, and the first copy was available in 1989. Her first vision occurred in 1983. The earliest copyright date on her maps is November of 1988. The earliest copyright date for Gordon Michael Scallion’s book Notes from the Cosmos in which he describes the Earth changes is dated 1987. And the first Scallion map I obtained many years ago is copyrighted 1982. I don’t know if the copyright is when the map was first produced or is for the changes he wrote about that are shown on the map. Anyhow, I have no reason to doubt that the maps were produced independently by the two individuals. Which actual map was first is probably not important.

The “I am America” maps are interesting because they show the changes that could occur in progressions or stages. Each map represents a different stage in the cycle of changes. Text around the maps explains the key events that will occur. I reviewed the maps because I wanted to see if what we are experiencing worldwide fits one of the stages yet. We appear to be experiencing some of the changes described for Map 1. There are five maps in total. A sixth map is referred to by Toye’s source as one that will not be shown to humans. According to her source, we will produce this map by our thoughts and actions. If geographic changes reach Map 2, we will see a much different country and world. Based on the information provided, scientific reports, and my dreams, I am using ten to twelve years for the final picture to evolve, which may not match either map.

The maps of and information about Gordon-Michael Scallion and Lori Toye are easily found with an internet search. The maps represent a possible future. My own dreams have indicated that the earth-axis shift described by Gordon-Michael Scallion, Lori Toye, and others will occur and cause flooding of many geographic areas. The scientific view is that such a shift is not likely to occur.

Some may dismiss these maps as products of disillusioned individuals. But they cannot dismiss what is actually happening. While the cataclysmic changes shown in the maps of Gordon-Michael Scallion and Lori Toye are still hypothetical, the actual changes occurring today are not. When the changes become so dramatic that everyone accepts what is happening, it will be difficult to avoid the serious consequences of inaction and disbelief. The time to prepare is now. I am NOT prophesying Armageddon, but I am warning that unless greater action is taken by individuals and governments, major Earth-changing events are coming, and it will not be possible to avoid the effects. Even if accelerated programs to deal with climate change are put in place, it may not be possible to prevent all of the predicted changes. Dramatic changes in the geography of the Earth that were not caused by humans have happened in the past. So it is not surprising that they may occur again. But we are causing or accelerating changes in the climate. The consequences will be felt by everyone. You can see this for yourself if you begin to record and interpret your dreams.

Prophets are often criticized, especially when the predicted events do not occur. However, such criticisms may not be justified. Predictions of the future reveal where the future leads if we stay on the current path. This is true for individuals and society as a whole. If we change to another path, then the future will change as well. Dire prophetic messages occur as a warning to change before it is too late. We have free will, and we can exercise that free will to create a different, and better, outcome. Of course, the longer we delay, the more difficult it will be to affect positive change.

Society is very materialistic. I believe that few people seek guidance daily for their activities. Looking within is not in vogue; the focus of most people now is on social networking enabled through gadgets and technology. Their view is external with enormous importance placed on distractions, material possessions, and wealth. Children and many adults are addicted to the applications on their cellphones and tablets with much of the day spent online. I wonder how many spend even fifteen minutes a day in meditation or studying their dreams.

If even a portion of the Earth changes shown happen, they could take down the US economy. The wealth people think they possess could disappear overnight. What would you do if you could not get cellphone reception or an internet connection for an extended period? Most of us are now completely dependent on these technologies. I can speak from experience living in Florida through hurricane Irma that it is not pleasant. For a period of four days, I was without power and cellphone reception. And for two days the restaurants open near me only accepted cash. Fortunately, I was prepared ahead of time by a dream that showed the impending event. I decided to stay in Florida because some family members could not leave. My dream and experiences are described in a November 7, 2017 post called “Reflections on Hurricane Irma.”

The time to prepare is now. If you are connected daily to your inner self, you will know what to do. If you are monitoring your dreams, you will prepared for any impending disaster. You will not panic and feel overwhelmed by events. You will know that true peace and joy come from within, and they can be found in any circumstance. But you cannot simply wait until there is a disaster to look within for help. You may find it difficult or impossible to reach any sense of calm if you have not prepared yourself in advance with daily effort. You simply will not know how to tune in. You will find yourself overwhelmed by events and completely dependent on external circumstances.

Society Reflects Us

This last election, with some incomplete results, shows a much-divided America. Each side in the division looks with scorn and contempt on the other side. Many of the core believers, whether espousing a democratic or republican philosophy, think they are right in all of their beliefs and the opposing views are nothing short of evil. People are now readily demonized based on how they cast their vote. We can no longer talk with one another, and political philosophy now defines our worth as a person.

My many years of studying my dreams has taught me that things are seldom as clear cut as our conscious minds might believe. The conscious mind develops filters during our formative years, and by the time we are adults, we see life through those filters. We think we see life as it is, the real world. But few people see the real world because anything that conflicts with their biases is filtered out and never really seen. The beliefs of our parents, the geographic location where we were raised, our religious training, the school where we were educated, the state of our health, and other influences during our formative years have all gone into creating our worldviews.

Even when I thought I was seeing everything clearly, my dreams have shown me that sometimes my view was not completely accurate. This is one of the great benefits of the study of our dreams. We quickly learn when our approach to a problem or position we have chosen is not correct. This allows us to see things in a broader way and make adjustments before we become completely committed to an erroneous position or bad approach. It is often difficult to see ourselves as we really are, not as we think we are or would like to be seen. But seeing the truth heals and grounds us in reality.

At this time in our society, there is much hate. Many people decry that hate and are quick to find blame. They believe the other person or group is the one responsible for all the hate. In reality, I think many of us contribute in some way. The world we experience reflects the beliefs of the society in which we live. And we are all part of that society. We all need to first examine our own biases and hates—yes, hates— to ensure that we are not contributing to the problem. If we look at people we consider the opposition and cannot find any good in them, we are probably not helping to reduce the fractious forces operating in America today.

Some few may be among the greater contributors to hate. But I think we must all first look within ourselves to resolve our own hate before pointing the finger at another person or group. That does not mean we cannot take positions and point out wrongs when we see them. However, we cannot spiel vitriol ourselves and claim we are not contributors to the hate that is so prevalent.

The subconscious mind speaks to us every night through dreams. It assesses what we have thought and done during the awake hours. Some have suggested that it is the soul’s review of each day’s activities. If we want to live a life that is free of illusion, we must unite the conscious and subconscious aspects of ourselves. We can begin to do this through an interpretation and study of our dreams.

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 [JD1]