Sweet Dreams

I've never met a teacher that doesn't have dreams about school.  And by dreams, I mean nightmares.  In fact, for the first five years I taught, I think I had a "school dream" almost every night. It was exhausting.  When I woke up every day I felt like I'd just spent seven hours in front of kids teaching.  And I had to get up and do it all again.   Sometimes I taught complete lessons in my sleep filled with uncontrollable students heckling me  and missing materials.  And yes, all you Freud lovers, I even had the dream where I arrived at school in my underwear.  

Thank goodness, every year I teach results in more infrequent school dreams.  The exception to that being in August when the new school year is a few weeks away.  Watch for teacher facebook posts around mid-August and you'll see them proclaiming that the "school dreams are back!" or some such reference to the start of school.  This dream always sadly marks the return to school mode for us and the end of summer.

The subconscious is a funny place.  Although I think of class management as one of my strengths, it never fails that my school dream is always one where the students are being defiant and unruly and I am unable to control them. Needless to say I wake up from these  dreams, heart pounding and filled with anxiety, worried that I might get a class that I am unable to handle. 

As the years have passed, some of the dreams are now happier, less nerve wracking dreams and I'm sometimes even able to dream up an activity or lesson that I actually try in my classroom. Although,speaking honestly, it always sounds better in the middle of the night.  I take this as a sign that I am finally, after fourteen years, adjusting to life in a classroom.

So last night I had a dream that a teacher friend across the hall died.  Very unnerving as this dream was pretty clear and not as jumbled up as many dreams are with time and place.  She is a young, healthy teacher and of course, I became distressed and sad in my dream, awakening feeling uneasy.  So, naturally the first thing I did was google dream interpretations and looked at what that dream might possibly mean. Bottom line was that it said there will be a change in our relationship, perhaps by distance or a move.  This magical dream interpretation computer site declared that I was trying to deal with the upcoming change.  Hmmmmm.  

As soon as I arrived at school this morning, I stopped by this teacher friend's room to relay my dream.  At first a little horrified by the darkness of my dreaming of her death, she clapped her hands and smiled when I informed her what Dream Interpretations.com said it all meant.  

She clapped her hands together. "I'm ready for a change.  Or a move!"  

Way to look at the positive side. 

If you are a teacher, you know the school dreams I am talking about.  The places where all of our insecurities and fears turn into monsters.  And my, oh my, we already have enough stress and strife in our waking teaching life.   

So to all you dreamers, and teachers, here's hoping your nights are filled with sweet dreams.