By now I should be accustomed to this chaos, plan for it even, since John Lennon 'got it' so well: "Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans." Suffice it to say I am very happy to be here again, at last.
I am also rather happy, if also surprised, to see that one of my dreams has shown up in 'Melissa's' dreaming life. Ironically, given that 'Melissa's' father owns an entertainment conglomerate which includes a circus and carnival division, I see how tigers and elephants would be relevant in her dreaming and waking life, but I am quite puzzled about their relevance in either my dreams or my daily life.
These magnificent animals came to me in a dream in April 2008, months before I even conceived the notion of blogging. I was inspired to use the dream for 'Melissa,' although I was not certain why, and reported it almost verbatim. One of the changes I made was to describe the big cats in her dream as tigers, whereas in my dream they were jaguars.
One of the first things I do with an intriguing dream such as this is to research any out-of-the-ordinary details like jaguars in flimsy bamboo
cages and elephants carrying Hot Pockets to feed said jaguars. By and large I am still waiting to see what message those animals were intent on delivering. I discovered with some pleasure that in Mesoamerica jaguars, often called 'tigres,' were revered as manifestations of the goddess and appreciated for their strength, beauty, grace, and ability to function on land and in the water. They are the only big cats who swim willingly and by choice.
So, in one night's dreaming two of these magnificent cats confined themselves in flimsy cages and waited on my deck, quietly and patiently. So, I will wait, quietly and patiently also, to see what message they may bear.
What am I to make of the elephants ceremoniously bearing Hot Pockets as food for the jaguars? The notion of elephants happily bringing food to the jaguars puzzles me because big cats prey upon elephants. I am puzzled further by the diminutive size of the elephants - why so small? The Hot Pockets must be meant solely to symbolize some form of nutrition for the cats, but what? Why bring them processed people food? (Do not get me started about processed foods!)
There may be a message to me in the appearance of the elephants, but what exactly? To begin with I always associate elephants with the Hindu Lord Ganesh, Destroyer of Obstacles. Given that, it is most interesting that when I ask the jaguars (goddesses) if they are hungry two (young?) Destroyers of Obstacles happily arrive with people food for them. That may inform my understanding of their 'mission' to the jaguars, but is there some other message for me?
What obstacles face the jaguars? I freed them from their cages, so I doubt that those are obstacles. It is interesting that they waited to be freed, rather than just tearing apart the cages.
As a final interesting note I will share something that happened the day after I posted that dream as 'Melissa's.' My husband and I were driving north to visit some Etowah Indian burial mounds. We both exclaimed when a beautiful, elegant silver convertible glided past on our port side, top down open to the sunshine. Then another, similar convertible passed us on our starboard side.
I was stunned to realize that two Jaguars were literally 'purring' down the highway with us! I've seen many, many Porsches, BMWs, Mercedes, Lexus vehicles here in the Atlanta-metro area, but until then no Jaguars of note. Now I see them just about everywhere - and I smile!
[Photos: Top - our cat, Mardi, June 2006; Bottom - the Ringling Bros. - Barnum and Bailey Circus, Atlanta, February 2009.]
