Background information: This is the second marriage for both of us. My husband never buys presents, and we do not have sex often, especially in the daytime. We had great sex in the afternoon just before this dream. A few days after this, my husband was unfaithful. Looking back, it seemed like a warning.

In my dream my husband comes home from work with a gift for me. The gift is in a beautifully wrapped box. It is beautiful! When I unwrap it, inside is a bracelet that is made out of plastic, something that came out of a gumball machine. My children were watching me unwrap this and started laughing when they saw it. I asked my husband, "What is this supposed to mean?"

—Claire, Age 58, Married, PA, USA

Hi Claire—

After such a lovely (and unexpected) afternoon together with your husband, your dream must have tasted like bad fruit. The gift you received looked good on the outside, but inside, it was rotten!

Items that come in boxes in dreams -- that we need to unwrap -- are metaphors for hidden communication. What is the information contained inside, that our curious eyes hunger to uncover? If a letter or parcel remains unopened, or if we are denied access, it represents communication withheld. (Is a lover or coworker hiding something from us?) If a gift turns out to be disappointing, the dream reflects tarnished expectations. We were hoping for something that was beautiful, inside and out.

Like the midday lovemaking you shared together, your husband's gift in the dream was an unexpected "present." Despite its attractive outward appearance, you soon discover the gift is cheap and valueless. Your dream reveals your intuition that the love you shared was only "skin deep." Your husband's subsequent affair, unfortunately, confirmed this suspicion.

The inclusion of your children in the dream reflects feelings of public shame and embarrassment for the way your husband is treating you. What's the message of this dream? It's time to make a stand. If your husband can't learn to treat you better (and give you gifts you deserve), it may be time to give him a present of his own. Imagine his surprise -- when you show him the door.