News reports describe Jeff Weise as a troubled youth who usually wore black and was teased by his peers. Jeff's mother has lived in a nursing home since suffering brain injuries from a car accident and his father committed suicide four years ago. He was being educated through the school's homebound program and on March 21, 2005 he became the suspect in the "worst school shooting since Columbine" at Red Lake High School in Redby, Minnesota. Weise shot his grandfather and his wife at home before killing five students, a teacher and a security guard at the school. He wounded 14 others before allegedly killing himself.
In a time when "Goth" culture is common, Jeff's black garb, preference for heavy metal music and preoccupation with death were dismissed. While these behaviors in themselves may not be an indicator of problems, combined with other alarming issues they may have been symptoms of deeper issues. According to reports, he was ostracized by other students. I find it disturbing that people observed enough to report on Jeff's behavior after the tragedy but no references are given as to whether the community or school responded with services. Instead, it seems that he was further ostracized by his removal from school. This seems to be a typical pattern in our society although we claim to be proactive rather than reactive. Jeff also allegedly described himself as a "Native Nazi" on an online message board and was "cleared" of suspicion after making violent comments, including saying that it would be "cool" to shoot up the school.
These were obvious, "in your face" signs that Jeff Weise might be a disturbed youth. It would seem that disturbed individuals may have disturbing dreams. Interestingly, I have found little information on the internet to support that theory. This may be partly due to the confidentiality of the therapist/patient relationship. If the dreams of individuals such as Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer and Adolph Hitler were studied by their psychiatrists, that information may not be available to the general public. According to this article: Dream Interpreters Make Better Parents, we can help our children grow up to be more emotionally healthy by interpreting and teaching them to interpret their own dreams. The author feels that if the parents of the youths who committed the Columbine shootings had been more in touch with their children's mental processes, their behavior may have been foreseen and prevented. The author suggests that this could be accomplished through including dream interpretation as part of the parenting process.
As a dream interpreter, I find this theory promising but slightly flawed. Children dream more "fantastic" dreams with more abstract symbolism than adults. Parents would need an understanding of this and more highly developed insightful skills to interpret children's dreams. There are a few dream dictionaries on the market specifically geared toward children's dreams. According to this study: Determinants and Mental Health Effects of Dream Recall, dreamers who dream shameful and undesirable dreams are less likely to disclose them to others or may not remember them at all. This is consistent with Freud's theory that the unconscious mind speaks in symbols as a means of avoiding direct confrontation of painful thoughts and emotions. Blocking these memories completely is called repression. Further, the study reports that severity and duration of traumatic events has an effect on dream recall.
Recurring dreams and nightmares in children can provide important insights into issues they may be struggling with in daily life. Children are more likely than adults to have superhuman powers and wonderful fantasies in their dreams. These dreams can be used to promote confidence and self-esteem toward helping your child form dreams for their future. Discussing dreams with your child can provide wonderful opportunities for quality time and build a solid foundation for communication. Teaching children to interpret their own dreams will provide them with a lifelong skill for personal and spiritual exploration. Combined, these benefits may indeed create avenues to identify and prevent serious problems before they occur. Even if only one tragedy was prevented, wouldn't it be worth it?
May all your dreams come true!
Parthena Black is a professional social worker and ordained minister with experience in tarot and runes. For private spiritual counseling and intuitive readings via e-mail, please visit her at oymygoddess.com.
Save to Del.icio.us
