Dreamer’s Disturbed by Deadly Dad

Dear Cynthia: I dreamed that my dad was trying to kill me. He was doing it by lethal injection, and when he gave me the shot, I could feel myself fading out, almost like I was going to sleep but I didn’t want to. The next day I woke up as if I had just been asleep, but it was different. I could tell that I was dead. I went to my college, feeling sort of groggy. In the parking lot there were a lot of security cars. I walked up to a group of my friends and told them I was dead, and they said they didn’t care.

--ANDREW BATTISTA

Watertown, N.Y.

Dear Andrew: You have probably heard of “the inner child.” We all have an inner father as well. Your dream could refer to this aspect of self, the protective, disciplinarian part of you. In this case, your dream could indicate that the inner father is “killing you” in the sense that paternal thoughts prevent you from doing things you would like to if you could throw caution to the wind.

Because fathers have a crucial role to play in their sons’ passage into manhood, and because you are of the age when you are preparing to leave the life of a student and enter the world as a man, your dream may refer to your actual father. Lethal injection is a metaphor for something toxic being forced into you, perhaps your father’s desires for your life, which differ from your own and which would “kill you” in a manner of speaking. In the dream, he seems to want you to be passive and accept his input. You don’t want to but seem helpless to avoid his influence.

So you try to carry on, going to school, but there are security cars there. Perhaps it’s a sign that you do need to protect your own goals and plans for your life and take the course of study that is your own heart’s desire. Your friends don’t care that you are dead: Either you don’t feel supported by them, or they will be your friends whether you follow your dream or allow your father’s influence to reign.

In my experience, the voice in your heart is divine and should be followed. Parents tend to come around and be supportive when they see that their child is happy and fulfilled.

Cynthia Richmond’s book “Dream Power: How to Use Your Night Dreams to Change Your Life” (Simon & Schuster) will be available Jan. 1 and may be pre-ordered at https://www.amazon.com. Fax your dreams to Cynthia Richmond at (213) 237-0732 or e-mail them to in.your.dreams@worldnet.att.net. Please include your hometown and a daytime phone number. “In Your Dreams” appears every Tuesday and should be read for entertainment purposes only.