Child Labor

Date: 1/29/2018

I swear it felt like I lived a whole life within this dream... It starts out, and I'm about 8 years old. I'm talking with my dad, about me going off to my work assignment. There was a thing where you either worked from ages 8-18 and then didn't have to work the rest of your life, or you had a childhood of freedom and worked your whole life once you turned 18. I told my dad it would be fine, but that when I got back I wanted to see my best friend for 4 minutes. "Why only 4 minutes?" he asked. I scrunched up my forehead. "Well, I mean, I would be happy with as much as you would give me, but I just picked the biggest number I could think of." He nods, and a minute later he pulls me to the side and asks quietly, "why do you want to see him? Why ask for that and nothing else?" I thought about it really hard, and finally answered, "well, I guess cause I love him." Then I went off to work at this trailer house way out in the middle of nowhere. It was next to a car junk yard, and every day I had to knock windshields out of cars (without cracking the glass). In the evenings I would look in the window of the house where the family all sat around the table eating, but I was never allowed inside. I was restricted to a 20x20 patch of cement with cement blocks around it, and I wasn't allowed to leave except when I was working on cars. It always seemed to be rainy and cold, and I'd always cry because I was so hungry and it looked so warm inside and all I had was soggy, musty, bread. Then, flash forward, and I eventually get to leave my job as I've hit 18. Those entire 10 years, all I'd thought about was those 4 minutes I'd have with my friend. Now that the time was almost here, i started to feel nervous. What if he didn't remember me? What if he didn't like me, or didn't care that I was back? I reunite with my family, and we head to this mall that is many many stories tall. I keep asking my dad about my friend, but he just keeps telling me we'll get to it in time. I decide I'll have to look for him myself. Inside this "mall" there were lots of sections, so some floors were basically mini neighborhoods and people would live there, and then other floors were offices and businesses etc. I remembered that my friend used to live in one certain section, so I decide I might as well start there. Inside, there are thousands upon thousands of people. They're all dressed in business attire, as if they're all going to job interviews. We notice a sign that says the shops don't open for another few hours (which meant shoppers weren't allowed in), but we pretend we don't see it, cause my family really wanted to go shopping I guess? All these people are forming into different lines, all try to go up, whether by stairs or elevator or escalator. All the lines are ridiculously long and barely moving. Eventually, we give up and get into one that looks somewhat decent. After much waiting we make it to the giant elevator where they load a group at a time. Everyone is giving us weird looks, because we are dressed casually, and they know we don't work there. A woman helping direct traffic stops us and asks if we're there to shop, meaning we weren't allowed to be there yet. I was really rude to her, all "excuse me? Of course we're supposed to be here, shut up." And pointing to my mom she's all, "I don't see a button up shirt." I luckily had a long sleeve button up on, though I had jeans too, but my mom had a sweatshirt over hers. The guards made her take it off, and then I argued with lady some more. "See? Button up shirt!!" The lady wasn't buying our ruse, however, and told us we had to leave or we'd be escorted out by security. I was really irritated with her, so I threw the last of my tea in her face and stormed out. Still frustrated, I went out to the parking lot and found my car. Feeling defeated I checked my phone to reread the text I'd sent my friend. It was all, "hey! So, I know you're probably busy and all, but I just wanted to see if you wanted to meet up sometime. If there's anytime that works for you, just let me know, anytime is good with me I am free...anytime." (I said "anytime" a LOT I remember) When I reread it I saw that he'd replied and I hadn't noticed. It was along the lines of "yeah, sorry! They really got me and Tommy busting a nut in here (I remember this line specifically because it made me CRACK UP SO HARD, he was like, foreign or something so he always got figures of speech wrong) and they don't give us breaks often. Sorry" The text made me so sad, because I realized that it meant he'd chosen to work from 18 on, rather than 8-18 like I had, and if his job was anything like mine, I'd never see him again. I looked up into one of the windows a few floors up and by some chance, happened to see him looking down at me, his face somber and apologetic. I wanted to mouth something to him, or wave even, but before I could, two figures showed up behind him and dragged him away from the window. I looked back down and saw a bunch of guards closing in on my car, and I just cried because I knew they were going to take me away.

AI generated interpretation Interpretation: This dream appears to be a representation of the idea of child labor, with the protagonist having to start working at the age of 8 and not being able to see their friend until they are 18. This could be a reflection of the difficulty of a life of hard labor, where the protagonist is deprived of a childhood and the freedom to make their own choices. The dream also reflects the feelings of isolation and loneliness that can come with working in such conditions, with the protagonist being unable to leave their small patch of cement, and being excluded from the warmth and comfort of the family dinner table. The dream ultimately ends with the protagonist being confronted by security and realizing that their friend will likely not be able to break free of his own labor, and that they may never see each other again. This could reflect a sense of powerlessness and sadness at the inability to help those stuck in the same situation as the protagonist.