In a recurring dream, I am in Ireland. (I write novels about Celtic mythology!) I am standing behind the door to a house, but I cannot see myself. Though he is surrounded by mist and trees, I see my fiance walking toward me, smiling. In his hand he carries things: strands of long green ribbon and a small velvet box.

As he appoaches the door of the house, he places the green ribbon over my hands and opens the velvet box. Inside the box are two shining emeralds. I reach to pick up the jewels, but they turn to brilliantly colored butterflies. They hover for a moment, then fly over his head toward the trees.

Thereafter, I awaken. I can almost feel the cool mist, and I always feel that I will miss those butterflies.

I have mixed emotions about my feelings with this dream. During the dream, I feel happy and content. But when I wake, I long for something for which there is no exact explanation.

I am sure that I love my fiance, and I am sure that he loves me. The green ribbon, I believe, is symbolic of an ancient custom called Handfasting....popular in Celtic cultures. I don’t know whether I long for the freedom of the butterflies (and being single) or whether I simply am anxious, as any new bride-to-be is.

—Joy, USA

Hi Joy—

What a romantic dream! If this is your version of every man and woman’s “wedding jitters” dream, then your future looks very bright indeed!

The emeralds and butterflies in your dreams are symbols of transformation. The jewels because light passes through them and becomes another color, and the butterflies because they emerge first in life as caterpillars, then retreat into a chrysalis and later evolve into butterflies. With your impending nuptials on the horizon, and your fiance being the man who brings you these gifts in the dream, can there be any doubt that the symbols represent your approaching transition in status—from single to married?

Similarly, the ribbon laid across your hands, in your opinion, is a reference to the Celtic common law wedding practice of handfasting, in which couples use a rope or thread to bind their arms together during the ceremony, to symbolize the commitment which “ties” them to each other. In the dream you accept your fiance’s magical gifts—and the highly significant ribbon—willingly. It appears to be a match well made.

If this dream leaves you with mixed emotions, perhaps it reflects the natural mourning that seems to accompany all periods of growth in our lives. As you stand at the threshold of marriage, (the doorway in your dream also functions as a point of entry to “your house” your self), it is natural to look back, as it were, and wave goodbye to yourself in the mirror. It is true that you are leaving a period of your life behind (being single and free), but the overwhelming message of the dream is positive. Your fiance is bringing you a wonderful gift of metamorphosis, which you open a door gratefully to embrace.

Is it time to draw your eyes back from the mirror? The past is done. A magical future awaits you.