Dear Perna,

Thank you for the dream interpretation, which was very interesting and illuminating.

It seems very likely that the recurring dreams are trying to impart a message - one that I'm only dimly aware of in my waking life, hence the metaphor of traversing water and entering tombs/buildings.

The relic is indeed probably something valuable and important I've left behind, and the dream is trying to tell me to let this go, as is the old man figure. The childish X's and O's, or "hugs and kisses" on the black box is indicative of the notion that it's something from childhood. I think this is about the fear of growing up and leaving behind childhood, and perhaps people and the kinds of relationships (affectionate parent-child hugs and protection) that I've had to say goodbye to but which I have not perhaps entirely detached from.

There is further evidence for this interpretation in another dream I had about a year ago, which was so vivid I can still recall almost all of it. I was walking around a town with a boy of about 10 or 11. I was also his height but I was my present self. There was something a bit naughty about him, he was the kind of boy that would misbehave at school (a clever little rascal!). He was explaining to me that I had special abilities and he encouraged me to use them, but I didn't want to because I was too scared of the consequences. Eventually he became exasperated and threw an object at a police car. The officers got out and started chasing us. The boy kept telling me to use my powers to fly. He said: "go up! go up!" Eventually I gave in and both of us started flying up into the sky. But in the air I started to have difficulty breathing and thought I was going to suffocate. Eventually we entered a passing plane and began stealing sweeties (candies) from the air hostess' trolley, and then I woke up.

I think this dream is about the fear of growing up, isn't it? ("go up" = "grow up", dreams often to work in puns/rhymes, as, I believe, Freud mentioned). The boy is part of me, perhaps? The younger me is trying to tell the older me to let go of my fears and grow up? (I don't know why he'd make me misbehave though.) The suffocating feeling of growing up is maybe a symptom of the anxiety about making the important yet difficult decisions and actions that is adult life, especially the responsibilities, which are in a sense, stifling or suffocating (they restrict you in some ways, although they are necessary and productive).

The Egyptian tombs seem to be part of a broader theme of historical places that includes the North African town, the ancient ruins, and Venice, Rome, and parts of historical cities. I don't know why I dream of these specific places (or, rather, places "in the style" of them) since I've never been to any of them, but clearly images of them have made an impression on my imagination. It may be because I grew up in Edinburgh, Scotland, which is a very old city with lots of mysterious, labyrinthine, hidden alleys and streets at different levels and elevations. This strange gothic setting would create quite an impact on anyone, and I think (although I've never really thought about it) I'm drawn to these fascinating old places. The personal connection to the graveyards is probably also related to the setting I grew up in. There are many old graveyards and ancient stone monuments in Scotland, especially in the open country where I lived for some time as a child, and perhaps they left a deep impression. I do recall getting lost in a graveyard at dusk when I was about 7 or 8, although it's not a particularly striking memory.

In terms of the religious significance, I'm not from a religious family but churches have been the setting for many important or emotional occasions, including a few recitals and readings when I was young, and my beloved Grandad's funeral a few years ago. I often dream he's alive again. Sometimes I dream I can see him but other people around us can't see him. Or I dream that he's dying again. This may sound strange, but I had a experience a couple of years ago where, in a sense, I "became" him in awaking state. There is a rational explanation for this, I'm sure, although it will sound very odd. I was with an acquaintance during a rather stressful time, and I had a sort of "manic moment" or whatever you might call it (I hadn't eaten for ages and was a bit quesy). I generally hallucinate (ants everywhere, waves crashing in the house, endless patterns) when I have fevers, but I was more or less ok that evening, and also I'm generally a very calm and quiet person who is never theatrical or hysterical. Anyway, during this hour or so, I didn't quite feel myself, I "felt like" I was other people: my mother, then my grandmother, then my grandfather, in sequence. Although I have only a faint recollection of the experience, I remember that my mannerisms and tone of voice and the things I said resembled those of these family members. I didn't feel in control of myself, it was like I was being compelled to do it, like a puppet. I became my mother, with her feminine elegance, vanity and faintly judgemental attitude; then I became my grandmother, who is caring and anxious. When I became my grandfather, I was him during his final hours of his life in the hospital. I ended up supine on the stone floor speaking in a gasping, dry voice and I'd gone deathly pale. My jaw was slack and I couldn't move it up and my mouth was totally dry. All of this I remember vaguely, and the last memory is of my friend on top of me, terrified, trying to resuscitate me.

It was very, very strange. Has this ever happened to anyone?