NaBloPoMo Day 26 - Collective Unconscious

We all share common dreams.
I'm not talking about goals and ideals, I am talking about the stuff that happens when you're asleep.

We all seem to have similar dreams.
Like being back in school, realizing it's the end of the semester and you're missing xyz that you need to graduate;  some class that you're enrolled in but never went to and never turned in the required papers for.  You know you've already graduated so it doesn't make sense.  I've had that dream about every stage of my education.  I remember a dream where I was back in grade school making up a class so I could graduate from medical school.  My DH has related his "back to school" dreams.  His usually have to do with some certification that he forgot to finish.

Another common dream is the flying one.  I used to be able to fly on command, but I haven't had the focus I used to have to consciously realize I was dreaming and allow myself to fly.  Now that's a weird sensation.  I've had a lot of friends talk about how they used to do it all the time.

Friends have also talked about their superhero dreams, their traveling dreams, and their wish fulfillment dreams.  I'm including erotic dreams in there too.  Somehow, we all share similar themes.

And what about when you're learning a foreign language?  I remember living in Mexico City and dreaming in Spanish.

I've always wondered what my dogs and cats are dreaming about... do they chase rabbits around?  Are they running and playing?  When they whine and cry are they looking for a treat or in distress?

I studied about dreams in college, and I remember reading a theory that they are our brains "dumping grounds."  We encounter so much stimulation that our brains would be overwhelmed processing it all so it selects the sounds it chooses to hear, the sensations it chooses to focus on, and the sights and smells it filters out from the cacophony of impulses around us.  Then when we sleep, all the extraneous data gets dumped.  Talk about making treasures out of trash...