Originally Posted by
FreelancePoliceman
Thank you for the response!
My immediate response would be to deny that. My family was already present in the dream and I felt they were overbearing enough, so I don't know why they would appear twice. Something I didn't mention because I couldn't recall the exact phrasing was, when I took this girl home, my father said something disparaging about how he couldn't believe someone like me could get a girl to wander after me. So why would my family appear in two different ways?
Having thought about it a little more though I wonder if you're right. I wasn't sure what to make of my reaction to the girl in the dream/the reason why I wasn't worried about her. I think everything she told me seemed right or natural, at least in the context of the dream-logic, so I was inclined to put my faith in her. It felt like she knew me well, and didn't have any intention of leaving me from the beginning -- like she was part of me, in other words. To the extent she told me any lies I think she was just trying to gauge my reaction, not to pass judgement on me but to decide better how to proceed.
For instance her belief I would be willing to take her in. She may not have been truthful in describing her circumstance or background, but she wanted to be loved and I wanted to love her, and she trusted me to do that if she asked. From the beginning she spoke to me like an adult, not bothering to pretend to be immature as she did with my family, and in return for that honesty I didn't pry and accepted her claims. Something else I didn't mention, but which I remember clearly, is that when I hesitated to leave her at "her" house, despite her smiling and assuring me she would be fine, she never turned from facing me or stepped closer to her house. It felt like despite her words she was unwilling to leave me unless I pressed it.
I'm inclined to see the girl as either a representation of my better self, or a cure against the "shadow" following me. Most of my problems have to do with my family. Her dispellation of that shadow would represent healing, I guess.
I thought about what would have happened if that dream had continued. We were reluctant to leave each other, and her fight with the shadow had established a pretext for remaining further. The shadow would be the opposite of our shared desire to remain together. It was the discomfort I felt keeping her with my family which had been the cause of our contemplating separation to begin with, so I think this supports what you were saying.