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Ghostly Woman I’m standing at my back door, which is open, in the middle of the night. Although it’s pitch black, I can see into my back porch and beyond it to a piece of scrubland near my garden. A woman is there, wearing a black cloak. She has short, black hair and floats gracefully. I cannot see her face but I know she is a ghost. I am petrified because I know that there is something evil out there which will get me unless I shut the door. Yet something (not the woman) is pushing against it, trying to stop me. My arm aches. Sweat pours down my back. I have never felt so terrified. Finally, I manage to shut the door. I am safe. Prue, Shipton
Dear Prue
In dreams, a black-clad figure of our own sex usually represents our psychological ‘shadow’: the ‘dark’ side of human nature which we would rather not see in ourselves. The woman therefore symbolises an aspect of your personality from which you have disassociated yourself - hence her ghostly appearance. Although not evil herself, she appears in the area where evil lurks. Notice that this area lies at the back of the house, symbolising a side of yourself which is hidden from view. But what is this ‘evil’ which you so desperately try to keep at bay?
You say that your father died last year. Because he was independent and never asked for help, you did not appreciate that his health was failing. You say you still feel guilty about this. I wonder if you are also angry with him for not telling you that he was ill. Do you feel in some way responsible for his death? Perhaps it is simply these simply these repressed emotions that are out to get you. Your dream is trying to shock you into looking at your ‘darker’ feelings in a kindly light. You are a vulnerable human being, not an evil one. It is time to forgive yourself.
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