Preface:  

A long time ago, when I first started out on this path, I had a dream one June about a secret Christmas production going on high up in a castle room run by a famous spiritual leader. There was a huge mystery surrounding this production.  What was being created, what was being wrapped, all a huge surprise. Yet, I was permitted to take a 'sneak peak' so I would know that there was yet much to do and accomplish in this world.    To this day, I remember this dream as a ‘big dream’ signaling my journey into unknown territory and my spiritual calling.

Background History:  

At the time of this dream, in 1996, I had just ended a relationship of 13 years, was contemplating changing jobs, and buying ,my first home.  My mother had passed in Feb, so I was feeling the loss in several areas of my life.   My life had always been defined by my corporate career and family/personal relationships, so the loss of both or all was a huge issue for me.  More uncertainty than I recall ever having before, so 1996 was a pivotal chapter and year in my life. 

Dream Interpretation:  

Traveling with a man .we are really good friends or closer ...man I don't see, but know as a close friend or closer, symbolizing spiritual helper because he is my guide in this dream quest. I knew the guide was God, and the journey was also directed by God, but still didn't understand the dream. . 

The location of a dream is an important clue about its meaning, (tunnels represent the unconscious mind, and chambers,  the compartments where we store these unfinished ideas and information, while stairs up or down represent the connecting steps to different levels of consciousness and experience. Castles represent royalty, a Christendom symbol.  Stairs going down represent exploration of unconscious motives and instincts [basement or dungeons], going up represent exploration of conscious attitudes, divinity and belief systems) so the dream predicts a spiritual journey into known and unknown territory, confronting fears and expectations in the quest to discover the "JC" celebrity spiritual leader who is orchestrating the Christmas Castle production, packaging and delivery of PAT (my initials) in a life-sized, human, envelope, 

As is true of shamans (dream travelers in native American lore) this dream mapped out my 'vision quest', or initiation on a spiritual path.   Ultimately, the quest for spiritual enlightenment leads through a 'dark night journey' to upper levels which are only accessed by winding stairs, suggesting the 'heart' of the journey is connected in both conscious and unconscious steps to the discovery of the celebrity spiritual leader who resides in a hidden (not yet consciously revealed) room.  It is her castle, as she is the one both the mystery and production surrounds, with a creative Christ-centered (Christmas, Mother Mary) identity, mission and spiritual presence in the universe.  In reality, the dream character is not just a 'spiritual leader', but also a well-renowned actress, famous playwright, and director of a Christian repertory theatre company, so the dream symbol points to the representative characteristics highlighted in the dream. 

Time against us, to find something specific.  His journey.  Won't give up, though others tell him to.   The time equation scared me a bit though, because I remember feeling under intense pressure to suddenly figure it out, get going in the right direction, start asking at least, the right questions!  Symbolically, however, a time limitation in a dream represents a corresponding commitment with destiny - a notation in time that we are destined to arrive at scheduled intersections on the path, often for the purpose of receiving additional training and education, or meeting other helpers who are placed there at specific times to help us get to the next level and continue in the journey.  

Find Stained glass window of Mother Mary on its side. Keep going up. Things out of proportion. Huge spider, doesn't scare me.     Interesting questions presented here, ones I didn't see initially.  For instance, why is the Mother Mary stained glass window on its side, not face up? A powerful spiritual symbol,  Mother Mary represents the Feminine Divine, Right-Brain Creativity, Intuition and Mystical expression. In this dream, she appears in a stained glass window, turned on its side, so it is a reference to putting aside spirituality and creativity for other things.   I encounter  a huge spider (prosperity) and other things 'out of proportion', symbolizing expectations are out of sync with the given reality.  Things in giant form represent 'larger than life' capacity issues - i.e., the experience is beyond our capacity at the time to handle   Why, don't I cower when I see the spider? I am not afraid, because my dream spider is a 'totem', representing spiritual safety, prosperity and good fortune.  To arrive at a hidden floor represents mastering an unconscious level of knowledge not yet revealed at the time of the dream. May also point to arriving at an understanding of what is being hidden from public view and why. 

Packages in production. Xmas presents. Famous "JC" leader running production. Celebrity woman putting PAT in human envelope.   The dream character 'celebrity' at the top of the stairs was an early adulthood spiritual mentor  who nurtured my creative writing, dramatic and performance skills in a Christian theatre group.  It was the first time I knew I had talent and was permitted to shine, until she learned I was gay, and ousted me from the organization.   I internalized the judgment as proof of my unworthiness to serve God or others in any spiritual capacity, despite my unwavering Faith in the opposite truth:  that God's unconditional love would never exclude me for being gay.  However, as this dream suggests,(22 years later)  it is the ultimate focus of my spiritual journey and healing recovery to resolve the conflict that is still 'up there', keeping me hidden from public view.  High floors, Christmas Theme, Castle (where royalty lives) Christmas production under way, all point to a Christ-centered 'birthing' journey..

Mail drop. Know who woman is. Lets me see for a reason. When I am ready, I will 'arrive' on that level and 'produce', this celebrity spiritual leader.  Know exactly how to package, market and deliver PAT (my initials)  in a human envelope.   The dream promises this result, and gives me a 'sneak peak', so I can 'know' this dream 'woman' I am to become one day. .

There are times we are given dreams long before we arrive at these intersections, so we can get a glimpse of who our  hearts really want us to be, what we need to be happy, what journeys we must be willing to undertake and embrace to live in sync with the universe and fulfill our destinies.  We can change the outcome at any time.  If you doubt this, just ask for clarification.   If you are feeling lost, rattled, disconnected from anything meaningful or spiritually fulfilling, then "sleep on it" - put your question to the universe and a dream will respond.   God will give you the map of the journey, and the guidance to get there.  . All you have to do is believe to make it so ....

Summary:  

I believe every dream, comes in the service of healing, so we can be free of the chains that bind us, and move on in our spiritual journeys.  Over time, dreams link together in common landscapes and recurring themes to 'map' out conflicts and solutions, and guide us unequivocally on a healing journey that will lead, if we let it, to the heart of Happiness and well-being, all wrapped up in a spectacular rainbow of Christmas colors, just waiting to be opened. 

So, when you dream of Christmas during off seasons where Christmas does not customarily reside, pay attention to the themes nestled there ... big and small gifts waiting to be unwrapped ... Christmas carols and yuletide fires blazing ... banquet tables decorated with Christmas wreaths and Holly feasts... because it is your Heart arriving with tidings of great Joy, to believe and be born again ...

We are our dreams, our truest destinies  The Christmas dream is You. 

   Phyllis A. Travis -