“The cave you fear to enter holds the treasures you seek.” ~~Joseph Campbell
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Living out here in the country I witnessed an illustration about dreams and caves. As I watched the events unfold I had a better understanding of how abuse not dealt with with effects dreams.
Living out here in the country I witnessed an illustration about dreams and caves. As I watched the events unfold I had a better understanding of how abuse not dealt with with effects dreams.
The swimming hole wasn’t an elaborate dream- just a simple one. The boss, who owns the two hundred acres where my husband is caretaker, had dreamed of childhood memories of carefree days at a swimming hole. It was my husband’s responsibility to turn his dream into a reality.
The County extension office came out to make arrangements to find the perfect spot. They determined the best place for his pond would be in the gorge that had been carved out by nature. The peacefulness and quiet that we had enjoyed gave way to the hum and roar of the bulldozers. The machines pushed, shoveled and moved large amounts of dirt into the proper prepositions to carve out a pond. It took several weeks before the project was finished and we had an empty pond.
Everything looked good and now all we had to do is wait for the rain from above to begin filling up the pond and then the dream would be realized. The rain came in short spurts so the water inched its way to the top. With each new rain we would rush to the pond and report back to the boss the newest measurement of the water level.
Month after month this went on until one day the sky opened up and rained down on us all of the necessary water to fill up the pond. Unfortunately just as quickly as the pond filled up it receded back to a lower level and still lower with each rain storm.
Surveying the area that surrounded the pond we learned that there were cracks in the limestone substructure. It was after a horrendous rain that something startling came into being. The fracture line had exposed a muddy trench. Further investigation was needed. As we crawled on our knees, sticky red clay clung to our clothes. Soon we came to an opening and there it was… a cave! We stood up. The cave had a musty smell that offended my nostrils. The cave had been here for years and the stalagmite that was at my feet bore witness to that fact.
As I surveyed my surroundings, we were in just the beginning of the cave. Four feet below the cave opened up again into a nice size room about eight square feet. It was in this room that the water disappeared. Looking along the wall there were other caves jetting out in every direction. My mind echoed Wanda’s words..."Could it be that the cave holds all the pain and hurt we buried?”
Surveying the area that surrounded the pond we learned that there were cracks in the limestone substructure. It was after a horrendous rain that something startling came into being. The fracture line had exposed a muddy trench. Further investigation was needed. As we crawled on our knees, sticky red clay clung to our clothes. Soon we came to an opening and there it was… a cave! We stood up. The cave had a musty smell that offended my nostrils. The cave had been here for years and the stalagmite that was at my feet bore witness to that fact.
As I surveyed my surroundings, we were in just the beginning of the cave. Four feet below the cave opened up again into a nice size room about eight square feet. It was in this room that the water disappeared. Looking along the wall there were other caves jetting out in every direction. My mind echoed Wanda’s words..."Could it be that the cave holds all the pain and hurt we buried?”
It was then that I realized that this is what my soul must have looked like. The caves jetting out in every direction represented all of my pain and hurt I had buried.. abuse.. grief.. .deaths..depression. I no longer wanted to be in the cave. I wanted to be where the dream was.
Turning around to leave, I caught a glimpse of sunlight. A fracture line above my head revealed where not only had the small ray of sunlight come through but also a green leaf that protruded into the cave. It was a promise of healing and a fulfilling life that would come if only I allowed God to work in this situation.
Outside again, we now had a realization of why the pond was only half filled with water. Something had to be done. I watched as an observer as rocks and logs and lots of material things were thrown into the cave to fill the void. It didn't work. Next, an order was placed for forty dump truck loads of red sticky clay to cover up the cave and pretend that it did not exist. Denial did not work either.
Finally, it was decided to build a wall of sandbags around the cave . It was reasoned that the sandbag wall would keep the dream of the pond alive or at the very least keep it from losing ground. Like the other solutions it was also a failure.The cave continued in its present state and the dream could not be fully realized until something was done.
It is the same way in my life. I cannot have my dream of being the person God intended me to be and to walk in my full potential until I deal with the unresolved issues buried in my soul.
Until Next Time, Gracie
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Gracie, love this post! The cave, the pond, the leaf and the ways we try to fill in the voids without understanding why they are there...I needed this today! Bright blessings...
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