The House that Sleep Built.

I don’t recall any event in the past 19 years of apartment and home dwelling that would have permanently damaged my or Ben’s psyche. Yet, we both have recurring dreams about buying or renting the ideal place, only to find it has some non-negotiable flaw. A single-family unit that reveals itself to be a duplex with no wall dividing us from our neighbors (we’ve both had this one). A basement where beyond a concrete wall there’s a dank, flooded dumping-ground of decay. A serene, wooded setting that turns out to have a band of savages living in it (this one is new and brought to you by the irrational subconscious of Mr. B. I get points for being very resourceful in that dream, I’m told.)

A more optimistic variation of this dream is that there is simply way more to the house than originally realized: an attic with room after room of treasures and oddities, or an additional wing with spacious closets, indulgent bathrooms, and delightful alcoves.  

Huh. So what does this mean? Or, in the context of dream interpretation, what does it really mean?

I did some research today, and there seems to be a consensus that a house is a manifestation of the self. Dreams of defective homes are revelations of threatening and/or troubling behaviors, characteristics, influences, or events concerning ourselves. And those houses that have more to them? They’re just that: disclosures of unrealized or newly uncovered potential.

With this explanation, these dreams are not so strange or surprising. I'm guessing many of us have them. Anxiety, reflection, exploration, and discovery are all part of not only our mental sorting, but also of our actualization.

What do you think? Tell me you've had these dreams, too...    

Spotted in Detroit, not in my imagination.