I am a bartender, and there is a crazy customer in the basement who spilled something. Everybody thinks that she is going to kill someone, like in a horror movie. My manager makes me help her. I’m scared, but clean up the spill. She is appreciative and smiles. I say, “So you won’t hurt me, right?” Her smile turns crazy. I repeat, “So you won’t hurt me, right?” Still smiling, she reaches into her pocket and pulls out a piece of wood (about 1x2x4 inches) with exposed nails. I start screaming, but it’s too late. She jumps forward and shoves the wood into my forehead. I feel blinding pain and hopelessness. I know I will live, but I’ll never be the same. I scream and scream. She laughs and walks out. The manager calls 911, but nobody catches her. She escapes. Time resets. I tell my manager to call 911 this time, but it still happens. Time resets. I tell everyone in the bar, but they say “this is just what she does.” They don’t care that she will shove nails into my forehead, because it won’t kill me. She shoves the wood with nails into my forehead. Time resets. I immediately run out of the bar, but it still happens. Time resets. I run out of the bar and hide until morning. I ask a polite lady if she can drive me home. She does. I am very grateful. Then, this strange lady drives me to her house instead of mine. It turns out that crazy wood woman is her daughter. The moment she is alone with me, she drives the wood with nails into my forehead. Her mother says she “just lets it happen.” Time resets back to the house. I try to run. Halfway through the run, the world fizzles and I’m back at the house. I try to run again. This time I run and hide. While I’m hiding in the bushes, afraid, I wake up.
Dreams like the one you described can often reflect deep-seated fears, anxieties, and feelings about control, vulnerability, and situation patterns in your life. Here’s a potential interpretation of the various elements in your dream:
Setting and Roles: As a bartender, you are in a service position, which may indicate your role in life where you are often serving or catering to others. Being tasked with managing an unpredictable or dangerous customer represents feelings of responsibility, especially towards individuals or situations that feel threatening or overwhelming.
The Crazy Customer: This character might symbolize a part of yourself or an external situation that feels out of control or chaotic. Her portrayal as someone dangerous can signify an internal fear of conflict or anxiety about facing aggressive personalities or situations in your waking life.
Cleaning Up the Spill: This part of the dream can represent an attempt to manage your responsibilities and cleanse or resolve chaos in your life. Your fear of the customer, juxtaposed with your willingness to help, could indicate feelings of being forced into situations where you have to confront difficult challenges or people.
The Repetition and Resetting Time: The cyclical nature of the dream, where time resets and the same traumatic events occur, suggests a feeling of being trapped in a situation that you feel powerless to change. It could reflect a recurring conflict, relationship, or problem in your life that you don’t know how to escape from or solve.
Pain and Hopelessness: The moment when she shoves the wood with nails into your forehead indicates a fear of emotional or psychological harm, perhaps related to a past trauma or a fear of being hurt by others. The knowledge that you will live but never be the same could symbolize a recognition that while you may survive difficult experiences, their impact can linger and change you.
Seeking Escape: Your attempts to flee or hide suggest an instinctual desire to remove yourself from harmful or threatening situations. However, the cycle of being caught or reset points to feelings of being trapped by circumstances or choices.
The Polite Lady and the Twist: The turn where the polite lady turns out to be linked to the danger re-emphasizes the idea that not everyone who seems kind and helpful is to be trusted. This could represent fears of betrayal or being unable to discern safe and unsafe environments.
End of the Dream and Awakening: The moment of waking up while hiding expresses a sense of relief from the tension, but it may also symbolize that while you recognize the dangers, the challenge may still present itself in different forms in your life.
Overall, this dream could be urging you to confront your fears, seek support in handling difficult situations, and recognize patterns in your life that leave you feeling powerless. It might also encourage you to assess your boundaries with others and ensure that you’re not left vulnerable to those who might harm you.