Category Archives: Jail/Prison

Jail/Prison, Personal Growth

Dreams From the Box – Exploring Transformation With Jail Metaphors

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Photo by Jimmy Chan on Pexels.com

Nov. 26, 2018

The reason I like to explore transformation using the metaphor of jail is because when strong negative emotions are operating within us, they can imprison us within walls of fear, anger, jealousy, sadness, etc. I like to think of the ego as being exactly like a prison wall, trapping the True Self within seemingly impenetrable cement walls, high spiky fences and cold steel bars. The reason jail is such a good metaphor for ego is because when someone sets out to develop new capacities within them Self or to strengthen their skills, then it is as though they are setting out to demolish the inner walls of fear. Every time we wake up to a new truth about our self or about others or about life, it is as though we are operating a wrecking ball & bulldozing our way out of the inner jail which contains us.

Everyone can have the “feeling” of being in a jail. When we work at a job which we don’t like, it can feel like we are prisoners within our own workplace. When we live in a neighourhood which doesn’t bring us joy, this can feel like being jailed. When people are living in poverty or have very limited financial means, it can feel as though they are prisoners – wanting to do more with their life but having no way to get there. When a woman lives with a man who is abusing her, physically or emotionally, this can be like a jail. When a man works hard for a steady and strong income, but his wife takes his money and spends it frivolously, this can be like living in a jail. What I am trying to demonstrate here is that regular day-to-day life can “feel” like jail when there is an abuse of power in the environment, whether at home or at work.

When I hear dreams from prisoners, often times I find that before they were in jail physically, they were already “feeling” like they were in jail metaphorically. They wanted things for themselves and their families but couldn’t see how to get them and they couldn’t see how to change the feeling of being trapped so they tried lots of ways to try to get what they wanted, in the hopes they would no longer feel trapped, but sometimes the things they did hurt others and the outcome was that they were arrested and wound up in jail. Now there are two challenges ~ the inner condition of feeling jailed which all humans can experience, and the outer condition of living in a physical jail.

What I tell the inmates who call me to share their dreams & nightmares is that they have very little control over the conditions around them but they have ALL the control when it comes to their inner condition. When they can identify a huge challenge, fear, or issue that’s coming up in a dream and we can work through it until it’s no longer an issue, then it is like being released from an inner prison and it is so freeing. This is the same approach which works for everyone, but for the inmates it’s all the more powerful because they face a real-life jail every day.

When we do the transformation work on our inner Self then we begin to see changes in our outer world. When we first think of our metaphoric jail and free our Selves from it then we can find an abundance of opportunities in our environments which weren’t available to us before. This is an incredibly empowering process which can truly change everything.

Arresting Police Officer, Jail/Prison, Police Car

DREAMS FROM THE BOX – Josh’s Cop Dream

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– an excerpt from the book with dreams from inmates

Josh’s Cop Dream & an Introduction to Jail Metaphors

30-year-old Hamilton resident, Josh H. shared a dream in spring of 2018. His dream depicted a scenario with a police officer. In real life, an officer shot Josh in the leg and the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) opened a file to determine if the officer had used excessive force during the arrest. After he was shot in the leg, arrested and incarcerated Josh began having nightmares. In November 2018,  SIU charged the arresting officer with attempted murder. The trial is pending. Here is Josh’s dream:

“It’s about me when I first got here. I was in the infirmary … I was calling my girl from my cell in Maplehurst. She answered the phone bawling her eyes out. I asked her what’s wrong and she tells me when she was leaving our house for work, as she was pulling out of the driveway there was a police cruiser waiting by the corner of our block. As she pulled out they started to follow her and my daughter. About two blocks away they put on their lights & sirens. She pulls over. An officer gets out and walks up to her car. As he approaches, she says she got out her driver’s license she opened the window and went to hand him her driver’s license He says, “Oh no Shauna, that won’t be necessary.” He looked to the back seat and said, “Well, well, well, this must be Josh’s baby girl.” And then he was like, “how’re you ladies doing this morning.” Shauna told me she was taken aback by this and asked him how did he know their names? He said he knew all of our names and he tells her he knows a lot more than their names. He tells her he knows her entire schedule and that her and Leah are home alone everyday. He says he is here on behalf of a colleague, in particular, the man who shot me. He tells her that if I don’t tell them what he wants me to tell them, meaning SIU (Special Investigations Unit),  that she just may disappear for good. She starts bawling her eyes out again and tells me on the phone I need to do what these cops are saying and of course I agree.

A few minutes later the COs [Correction Officers] come and tell me I have a professional visit. I go to the visit and the cop who shot me is sitting there. He cuts right to the chase and says, “Have you gotten our message? Did you talk to Shauna?” I told them I did get their message and I’ll do whatever they ask me to. Just don’t hurt my family. He says then I need to tell them I lied about what happened and that I actually don’t remember what happened. He says if I don’t follow through he will personally kill Leah and Shauna and the rest of my kids and will make sure their bodies are never found. I tell him I will do what he says but I tell him what a piece of shit I think he is. And then he slams his fists on the table, telling me I’m not playing with street gangs anymore, and there’s a loud bang and again I wake up dripping sweat and breathing really heavily.”
 

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My analysis of the dream begins with the importance of removing any thoughts of judgment. Every human being makes mistakes. Every human being falls short of their truest potential. No one is perfect. No one knows all the answers. Not only that but the culture we live in is not perfect either. There are very old systems in place which are outdated, antiquated, and erroneous. Many of these old systems are falling and crumbling around us, day by day. At the same time new systems are taking root in the society around us. Families are coming together in unity. Communities are taking ownership of themselves and empowering one another to thrive. And cities are transforming, becoming more reflective of the equality which is inherent to every human being. Humanity is waking up to its fullest potentialities. Casting off the shackles of the past and forging forward as an ever-advancing civilization.
 

Listening to dreams from people who are imprisoned and offering interpretations for transformation not only helps release the dreamer from their unconscious fears and anxieties but in sharing these dreams & interpretations we can get a glimpse of key elements which would help free those who may physically live in conditions of so-called “Freedom” but who are emotionally or mentally  imprisoned within their own fears.

The reason Josh’s dream is so great is that it shows where he and his partner want to go in life is having a safe and comfortable family. This shows up in the dream when his wife is driving their daughter to daycare and he’s saying he’d be willing to do anything to keep his family safe. These are the highest aspirations of the dreamer’s True Self. These are noble and honourable wishes. The role of a father is to support and protect their children so the dream shows he aspires to fulfill this role.

What stops him in the dream will be explored in the book. The things which stop him are the very same things which stop everyone. No one is exempt or free from this test in life. When we face a challenge, we can either give up or we can embrace it. This dream shows that when the dreamer sets his intentions to overcoming challenges he has a tremendous capacity to be able to achieve amazing things. This dream shows he has the ability to take authority over the fears & anxieties which limit him and he has the capacity to be a loving and supportive father. His dream so perfectly shows the double challenge which prisoners have in real life. They have the nightmare they are living within the prison walls and they have the inner nightmare of facing some pretty difficult things to face, like cops shouting and slamming their hands on tables. The solution is to become the authority over Self. As he does this more and more he will find the healing & justice his True Self is seeking.You can read what CTV posted when attempted murder charges were laid against the cop 9 months after Josh shared his dream at this link. Josh has not yet had a trial and his charges may still be dropped for lack of evidence backing up the charge.

Jail/Prison, Negative Behaviours, Negative Figure, Personal Growth

Inmate’s Dream About a Gang

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January 15, 2019

Last week an inmate shared a dream with me. He’s given me permission to publish it here.

I was in jail and the exit here is different, there are two gates, you go in one set of gates and then it closes behind you and then the next one opens and you go out. But in my dream both gates were open and I was standing there and then this group of people dressed in black, with masked faces, carrying guns shows up and they tell us to come with them, that they are breaking us out. I get really suspicious and I think they are not “real” gangsters but they are advocates and they are not going to get away with what they are planning so I don’t trust them. “They are not real gangsters” I keep telling myself. So I go to the COs [Correction Officers] and try to tell them what’s going on and I start shouting at the other inmates that it’s a trap and don’t go with them. I feel like whoever goes with the advocates is going to get caught and get extra charges and I don’t want more charges so I’m not going and I don’t want other people to go either.

The really interesting thing about this dream is that the dreamer has the belief that real gangsters could get him out of jail but advocates couldn’t. He even breaks “the code” of silence by going to the COs to alert them of the breach, meaning the advocates are not even worthy of his association or his support. This is a common belief in the world, where people have become accustomed to using power to get their own way and they don’t care who they hurt in the meantime. People can use a “gangster” attitude when they are trying to get what they want, even if they are white-collar leaders of a business or CEO of a corporation or principal of a school. The gangster attitude is about using powers of force and powers of numbers and powers of deception to get what they want which usually has something to do with getting large amounts of money, falsely presuming that money brings freedom in one way or another.

I find the metaphor of advocates here very intriguing. Advocates use many approaches to get the job done but essentially they are trying to go for change. They recognize an injustice and they plan some sort of method to get their change. Whether they try to achieve their aim by shooting down old out-dated models of education, rehabilitation, or social structures or try to achieve their goal by building up something new like building a new school or constructing a new court system or creating a new non-profit social enterprise.

The similarities between a group of anonymous activists and a group of masked gangsters are numerous. For one, they both have a collective vision of what they want to accomplish. Secondly, they are willing to take huge risks to strive for the goal they want. Thirdly, they accumulate power and momentum for their vision by attracting other like-minded people. Fourth, they are often willing to stop at nothing to actualize their goal.

The biggest difference, of course, is that gangsters are willing to completely ignore the law and advocates tend to try to change the law. Both groups are unhappy with the social structure, per say, and are willing to disregard it from one degree or another but the actions gangsters take tend to be quite illegal and even immoral, while the actions most advocates take tend to be more high-minded and within the bounds of commonly held moral or legal guidelines.

Why then would a dreamer trust gangsters more than advocates? What is the quality which is opening up within him? When he figures out the answer to this it will feel as though he is being released from jail, being released from an inner jail of fear.

The virtue and skill which advocates have which gangsters don’t have is Patience. Gangsters use power, authority and fear to control situations to get what they want quickly and with a lot of convenience, with guns or whatever. Advocates are usually patient in their approach and they may take a long time, months or years to achieve their goal. It’s not convenient but pays off in the long run.

This means the dreamer is working on developing Patience, doing things which take a long time to achieve, doing things which aren’t at all convenient but which get the job done without using fear or power to control others or situations. Patience is opening up to the dreamer now but because of past experiences when he tried to be patient with people and got hurt, he’s having trouble trusting the motives of people even when they have the same goal as him – getting out of jail.

Remember in a dream jail is a metaphor for being “trapped” in a condition of fear and being released from jail in a dream is a symbol for being released from an inner condition of fear. When the challenges are worked through, then a lot of positives can open up like Courage, Patience, and Determination.

In real life, when situations and opportunities for growth and change appear to the dreamer, he becomes afraid that he’s being trapped and so rather than go for the change he goes for protection, most likely because of experiences in childhood where it wasn’t safe to go for growth & change. In time, with a small bit of work on the issue daily then the dreamer will come to find he has a lot of Courage and Determination to see his plans through to the end.

 

Jail/Prison, Personal Growth, Travel

My Dream of a Cupcake & Jail

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January 15, 2019

In the dream, I’m traveling with a friend who used to be in jail, J. H.  The flight was spontaneous; the destination was the Middle East, to go on a pilgrimage of sorts. When we arrive, airline clerks tell my friend that there is an issue with his passport and they tell him he has to go to “the hole” for a few hours until the issue is cleared up. So armed guards escort him to a small, window-less 5×8 cell with cold cement walls and a small opening in the door with bars in the window. I’m allowed to talk with him thru the small opening in the door. While he’s in there, I go to a nearby shop and am looking for a cupcake for him but what I find is a shelf with a bunch of muffins and I say it’s good enough. I want to put a toothpick in the top with a sign that says something like, “All my Love.” But I can’t find anything to write on or with. Eventually, they let him out and I’m told he’s in my care now. When I look at my passport I discover his name is included in the photo section and it indicates he’s been “in the hole.” This disturbs me because it means whenever I travel now the authorities will identify me as someone who has either been in the hole or who has accompanied someone who has been in the hole. But I shrug at my friend and say it’s okay. Then we look around and are considering where do we go next.

Dreamwork With Prisoners, Jail/Prison, Personal Growth, Prison, Prison Cell

Jail Metaphors – Symbols for Being Trapped in a Negative State

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The really positive aspect of transformation is that everyone on the planet is in need of change.  The very best opportunity for growth and change comes when something in life goes differently than we planned. When we are planning something and our vision doesn’t manifest, we can get a range of negative emotions like fear, anger or disappointment. Everyone on the planet experiences these emotions to one degree or another.  It’s what makes us human. However some people can become so entrapped in their negative emotions it’s like they create a cage around themselves, a barrier, a wall, and they feel safe within that protection and they can convince themselves that they didn’t want what they were going for afterall. They didn’t want that job, or that relationship, or that house. Or maybe they tell themselves that it doesn’t matter ~ that they wanted it before but they don’t care anymore.

 

These strong negative conditions such as anger and fear come from a lower part of the human nature. Some call it ego. It is the animal-like nature which is a natural part of the human condition. Unlike animals though, humanity also has the potential for rational thought, for inspiration and for expressions of the Higher Nature, the True Self. These are the positive qualities which also make us human. The bounty of the human experience is that unlike the mineral, plant and animal kingdoms, the human kingdom can consciously choose to aspire for growth, change and progress.

 

The highest potential for a human being is to attain positive qualities, in other words, to be “freed” from the those lower conditions. To experience Patience, to practice Courage, to demonstrate Enthusiasm ~ these are some of the highest aspirations a human can strive for.

 

Every single human being on the planet has the potential to acquire more and more of these virtues and qualities which bring Joy to themselves and to others around them. The natural skills we are born with, combined with those we learn throughout our lives give us the tools and equipment necessary in order to build and construct the type of lives we want for ourselves.

 

Going for what we want and experiencing pain or trauma instead because of actions of others, or because of rules or laws, or because of our own shortcomings, can be devastating. Sometimes we can become imprisoned within our own disappointment or grief. We can give up on ourselves, on our hopes, our dreams for our lives, or for our children’s lives. We can succumb to the pain of loss and weighted down by the metaphorical chains of despair or anger can give up altogether.

 

Any human being can become imprisoned within their own Self.

 

A powerful metaphor for this condition of being imprisoned within the Self is “being in jail.” When we dream of jail we are dreaming of the condition of being trapped in our lower nature, our lower emotions, our fears, disappointments, etc. Everyone can have dreams of being in jail because everyone can feel stuck or trapped at one time or another in their life.

 

By exploring dreams from people who have actually experienced jail in real life we can learn valuable insights into the human nature. Their sharing of their dreams is a valuable gift. In fact, the insights gleaned from their dreams will reveal that even someone in prison can still be “free” from their lower natures while someone who is living on road, in regular day-to-day life, can actually be imprisoned within themselves, although it may be a somewhat invisible prison.

 

This book explores the condition of being imprisoned metaphorically and will lightly touch on the literal meaning as well because all lessons from dreams can be applied to real life in one way or another. An interesting journey is unfolding now. A journey into Dreams From the Box.

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Click here to read about the new book

“Dreams From the Box – Exploring Transformation With Jail Metaphors” .

Proceeds from sales from this book support a transformation program called Dreamwork With Prisoners.