Dr. Dream: January 22, 2025

Nuns, Buffalo nickels, and the dynamism of short hair.

You’re reading WOODRUFF. I cover the convergence of pop culture, psychology, and astrology. Join my entourage of subscribers—you’ve been missed. My bio is here.

Dr. Dream is a feature for paid subscribers to WOODRUFF.

Send me your dreams, and I will note my impressions in this column.

I read that Carl Jung regularly shared his dreams with an old man who worked as a gardener on his estate. Jung said that the gardener’s interpretations were so ‘off’ that it helped him tune into what, specifically, his unconscious was sharing in his dream.

That is an example of a good way to have conversations about dreams, understanding that the meaning you hope to unearth will usually come about in a way that isn’t logical or sequential. But the renditions here can be a start to sort of prime the pump of your inquiry.

Email me your dream, and please note if you want your name mentioned in the Dr. Dream column.

Not all submissions will be published.

“According to Jorge Luis Borges the most astonishing thing about dreams is not their psychic function, the biological mechanism that undergirds them, or even their nature. But the simple fact that they exist at all.” —J.F. Martel

Dear Dr. Dream

My dream involves a small dinner party that my family attended. Everyone in the family was there except my older sister. When I asked my mom, in the dream, why my sister was not present for the dinner, my mom explained that my sister had joined a convent to become a nun. We’re not really a religious family. Any clues about this dream?

Cheryl E., Santa Barbara, CA.