I had a dream the other night that the elephant was stuck in the room and no one could get out around it because it was so big.  My first thought was, of course, the saying that there’s an elephant in the room and someone should maybe mention it.
Then I started musing that simply acknowledging it doesn’t actually remove it or make maneuverability any easier. I mean, now we all admit and acknowledge there is a huge elephant in the middle of the breakroom or the living room or the bedroom or wherever, but it’s not going anywhere.
This is when I start feeling sorry for the elephant. (I have a big issue with animals being caged and stuck and unable to move…let’s not get started on that for now – stick with the elephant.)
I mean this creature is huge. We built an entire room around the elephant and no one can get out of the room while it’s in there. Knowing that he’s there is one thing, but maneuvering us out of the room is another.
What the freak do you do with an elephant in your room?
Of course, being an amateur-dream-interpreter gal I also asked myself a few inner questions.  Like “what elephant is in the room that I’ve acknowledged but haven’t moved?  And more importantly, what the hell am I supposed to do about it?
I came up with a few elephants.  The first thought that came up when I addressed the idea of moving the elephant – setting the guy free for pete’s sake – was that I need to dismantle the room.  That I have to break down the door or take apart the house because the elephant needed to go.  For his own good and mine.
Deep dream, eh?
I’ve never actually spent much time up close and personal with elephants.  I’ve seen them in the zoo. I’ve watched the Nature Channel and National Geographic specials, but I have no real experience with these giants of the African plains.  I’m sad about that.  (yes. I know there are more than one “kind” of elephants, but I’m not a zoologist or elephantologist, so I don’t want to get too far away from the dream aspect of this particular elephant).
My understanding about elephants (from the aforementioned TV and zoo experiences) is that they are generally pretty understanding, smart, problem-solving and gentle creatures.  They form families and communities and they stick together.  Watching out for the young, procreating and traveling long distances for food and water.  And they are huge, of course, which is why they could easily get stuck in a room.
Where is this going?
Oh, right.  Elephant is stuck in my room and I have to dismantle the house to get him out.  My first thought is to start painstakingly dismantling the room.  Piece by piece.  I envision taking apart a dollhouse – pulling out walls, neatly, one by one.  Then it occurs to me that I’ve been part of more than a few demolitions and rebuilds thanks to my years with Habitat and I’ve never actually taken a room apart gently.  So this elephant is going to need to charge the hell out of the room and let things crash where they may.
However, I’m not sure how to get a gentle giant to charge out of a room.  I dread the idea of mess and reconstruction.  Yet, there it is.
As I rework the focus and the base of my business (yet again) I realize that the elephant is there as long as I need him (sort of like Dumbo and his Feather).   But now I’m inconvenienced by him.  I feel badly for him being stuck in the room and although I acknowledged him a long time ago, I’d been loathe to remove him.  Maybe because he was comforting in some way.  Perhaps because he was known – and reconstructing the house was an unknown that seemed not only scary, but hot and time consuming and messy too. (And let me tell you – I’ve spent most of my life living in, working in, or right beside major constructions sites – so I know mess).
Now that I’ve worked through the elephant in the dream, I’ve started a constructive plan to deconstruct the house in a way that serves the elephant, everyone else in the room (that includes you of course) and me.  It still seems daunting, but now that the process has begun – the blueprints are exciting to see and I’m thrilled about the results that are coming.
What weird dreams have you had lately?  Any chance they can help you see a solution on the horizon?

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