My dream started in the DFW airport in Texas. I was boarding a flight with my family. My sister came on the plane with me, however, we did not sit together. I had a row to myself near the front of the plane while my sister was sitting back farther.

The plane took off and flew right over Texas Stadium, where the football team the Dallas Cowboys play. We were so close I could see thru the hole in the dome and see the line markers. After passing the stadium I could feel the plane having problems elevating. I ended up in the bathroom and the stewardesses were screaming at me to get out, but I couldn’t escape, and the plane ended up crashing. I emerged from the burnt wreckage in a large field with green fairway like grass, surrounded by trees. After speaking to the authorities I found out that I was the sole survivor of the crash.

The next thing in the dream I am driving down Baltimore Avenue in Ocean City, MD (the resort town where I have spent an average of two weekends every summer for the last 5 years). I sense it is early June, early in the resort season, and there are people scattered here and there on the beach but not packed by any means. I park my car and walk out onto the beach. It’s around 3:30 in the afternoon. As I walk on the beach I see a hot girl not far from me, smiling at me, standing next to a trash can with a blue and green tank top and shorts on. She’s holding a newspaper that she’s getting ready to throw in the trash. I walk over to her and begin talking to her. I tell her the story of the crash, and she believes I’m sincere. I ask to look through the paper and she gives it to me but it’s an Ocean City throw away and we put it into the garbage and walk towards the boardwalk to buy a big city paper to look for details of the crash. The end.

This is by far the most vivid and detailed dream I’ve ever had. I can still see it in its entirety 5 nights later. Please help!

—Andrew, Age 25, Single, Male, Texas, USA

Hi Andrew—

Plane crashes in dreams symbolize concerns related to our careers. The difficulty that your plane experiences gaining altitude, accordingly, indicates doubts that you “may not arrive” at a current goal in your career. Are you experiencing difficulty climbing to the next level of financial or social success? The inclusion of the Dallas Cowboys football stadium (just before your plane goes down) is a reference to sports and competition. Are you feeling the pressure of working in a competitive job market?

The question we always want to ask when we dream of a plane crash is: “What big goal—that I have high hopes of attaining and reaching in my career—do I now feel I may be unable to reach?” The fact that you escape the plane crash unhurt is the dream’s way of showing you that an actual plane crash is not the dream’s meaning. Can you identify the doubts you have in your waking life, that you feel may lead you back to Ocean City this summer?

Dear Dream Doctor—

As far as my career goes, I have been in the same job for about a year and a half. I am pretty much ambivalent about the job. I don’t really love the job, and I don’t really hate the job. It pretty much puts food on the table and pays the bills.

I am not really competing with anyone for anything here at work or in any other part of waking life. The only thing that I have been wondering about was whether my career and degree choice were correct choices, since my job does not seem to be advancing much and I don't seem to be qualified for any jobs.

I have been thinking of moving to Ocean City for seasonal work in case something happened with my employment.

Hi Andrew—

It’s still safe to fly, because this dream is all about your career! Your job is “not advancing much,” and it’s causing you to wonder if you’ll ever achieve your goals. In fact, you already have a “Plan B” worked out, in case your career soon comes to a “crashing halt.” You’ve decided you can head back to Ocean City for the summer!

Instead of being ambivalent about your career, your dream is encouraging you to pay attention to it. Your dream shows that you want to be feeling passionate again—both romantically (the girl on the beach) and in your work. It’s time to score a touchdown in both areas!