From Journal Entry: June 20, 2002
In the dream, there was a brother and sister named Elise and Ben. They were deeply in love with one another. When their friends discovered the nature of their relationship, everyone was shocked. Yet Elise and Ben felt no shame about their feelings. They openly accepted their bond despite the reactions of those around them.
At the time I had this dream, my husband and I had friends whose names were Elise and Ben. In waking life, they were married. Because of that, I initially assumed the dream was somehow connected to them. The dream was strange, memorable, and symbolic, but I had no idea what it meant.
Then something unexpected happened. Not long after having this dream, I accepted a position as a nanny for a Jewish family. Their two children were named Aliza and Ben. When I first heard their names, I immediately thought back to my dream.
Aliza was a baby, and I absolutely fell in love with her. Caring for her awakened something deep within me. In many ways, she became the reason I wanted to have children of my own. Ben, on the other hand, was energetic, spirited, and quite a handful at times. Yet together, these two children became an important part of my life during that season.
Looking back, I cannot ignore the connection. Was the dream literally predicting the future? I don't believe dreams always work that way. Instead, I have found that dreams often communicate through symbols, themes, emotions, and word associations. They may not show us future events exactly as they will occur, but they often foreshadow people, relationships, opportunities, and experiences that are approaching.
What stands out most to me now is the symbolism of the relationship between the brother and sister in the dream. A brother and sister share a familial bond. Their connection represents closeness, belonging, and a deep emotional attachment. In the dream, the focus wasn't really romance. It was the profound bond between two individuals who were connected to one another.
When I later became a nanny, I entered the intimate world of a family. I became closely connected to two siblings whose names echoed those from my dream. I cared for them, nurtured them, and became emotionally invested in their lives. The dream may have been preparing me for that experience long before it arrived.
This is one reason I encourage people to keep a dream journal. Many dreams do not make sense when they first occur. Some remain mysteries for months or even years. Then life unfolds, and suddenly the pieces fit together. What once seemed random reveals itself as meaningful.
Dreams have been some of my greatest teachers. They have warned me, guided me, comforted me, and at times introduced me to people and experiences before they appeared in my waking life.
This dream reminds me that the language of dreams is rarely straightforward. It is symbolic, layered, and often ahead of its time. Sometimes a dream plants a seed of recognition so that when the future arrives, we can look back and realize we were given a glimpse of it all along.
Have you ever had a dream that only made sense years later?
Madison Meadows