A Seal In A Parking Structure

photo courtesy of nationalgeographic.com

There are times when dream symbols can be interpreted in a variety of ways. In the dream we will examine this week, one of the themes is that the dreamer saw seals sitting on a concrete slab on the upper floors of a large parking structure. The word “seal” can have any number of meanings. Literally, in this dream, it was a reference to a large ocean mammal that has flippers and a loud, comical bark. But the word “seal” has other meanings. One can “seal” a deal, or an envelope, or a friendship, or one’s own fate. And since the dream was transpiring in a parking structure, the reference to seals can also be automotive. Cars are full of different kinds of seals that keep liquids from leaking out where they are not supposed to be.

Even without looking more closely at this dream, there is already another word with multiple meanings: concrete. Once again, in the dream, the concrete was literal; it was a reference to a big chunk of grey cement. But one can have a concrete plan or idea, and one can have concrete evidence.

Let’s examine this short dream with its theme that has recurred in the dreamer’s life on repeated and on a long-term basis.

A dream about seals in a parking garage

In my dream I’m in my car with two other women. I’m not really sure who they are, but there is a feeling of friendliness—not really intimacy, but no tension of any kind. I’m driving around in this big parking garage. It has multiple floors that seem endless. I go up ramps and down them in what seems like a never-ending maze. I think I’m looking for some kind of exit or entrance or a booth where you pay to get out, or just something different than the constant going around from floor to floor. I’m getting frustrated because I don’t seem to be able to find a way out. The whole time the three of us in the car are just chatting. Then, I go up a ramp, come around a corner, and there, on a big slab of concrete is a seal. I’m startled and concerned that the seal shouldn’t be there; it should be in its own habitat. But one of the ladies in the car with me says, “Don’t worry about it. It will be just fine.” That’s when I wake up.

Some initial thoughts

As always, my first priority is to listen carefully to the dreamer’s answers as I prompt her in as non-directive a manner as I can. With some dreams I get a hunch about the direction the interpretation might go. But in this case, I really have no idea, so I do my best to avoid assumptions.

Still, in the back of my mind, I am turning over the various possible meanings of a word like “seal,” wondering if any of them will become relevant. Even if the dreamer takes this in a totally unexpected direction, it is still conceivable that an alternate meaning might also add another layer of understanding. We’ll just have to wait and see where it goes this coming Wednesday.