Being in Touch

In a search for God and a search for self, we always end up coming home. Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, when asked by Glenda what she learned on her journey, replied, "I learned that if I ever lose my heart's desire again, I won't go looking past my own back-yard because if it isn't there, I never really lost it to begin with." Dorothy's search for the wizard ended in the discovery that he was only a man behind a curtain, with all the needs and frailties that she, herself, had.

We can make our journeys endless by seeking God or self outside of ourselves in people, places and things, or we can shorten it by turning inward and looking for them where we are most likely to find them. Exactly how we get there is of little importance. Ultimately the path will fade away behind us, anyway. It is the being there that matters; our willingness to know that our search begins and ends in the same place, within us.

We are the man behind and in front of the curtain.

Hatred

Pretending that painful or negative feelings do not exist doesn't keep relationships more intimate.

Rather, we can actually create inner distance when we act as if our intimate relationships are not strong enough to hold any pain, anger or hate.

Powerful feelings can be frightening, but to deny their presence keeps us from the deeper layers of ourselves.

When our intimate relationships are able to hold these powerful, paradoxical feelings of love and hate, anger and forgiveness, then something deep within us allows us to relax and let go.

If we are not able to do this, then perhaps we may need to withdraw from the relationship, so as to once again become ourselves.

In this era of self-understanding and conscious efforts at parenting, we learn we should not come down to our children's level. That is, we should not be as hateful toward them as they are to us. Yet, if we seal ourselves off they are cheated and burdened by the illusion that anger and hatred are personally inappropriate. Therapists are like parents. When the therapist comes down to their level, both grow from it when the generation gap is reestablished. ~ David V. Keith

An Attitude of Healing

It was Viktor E. Frankl who said that the only thing that we have that cannot be taken away from us are our attitudes, the contents of our minds and hearts. 

Today, more than ever, we are called upon to take an attitude that will promote wellness and healing, to choose life.

When I take responsibility for the contents of my mind and heart, I take my place as a person of value to society.

Quantum physics tells me that we are all part of the same particle mass, interconnected, of one stuff or soul.

Who I am from within affects all that is without.

One very practical thing that I can do for my world is to think positively about it.

I can attempt to live a more conscious life.

Each person who transforms within, who enters into this struggle toward a more conscious life brings others with them.

Healing may not be so much about getting better, as about letting go of everything that isn’t you – all of the expectations, all of the beliefs – and becoming who you are. ~ Rachel Naomi Remen

Living in Spirit

When we think we are only a body, we are in denial of our true source of aliveness. When we think we are only a soul, we forget to be human. We are in this body for a purpose, so that we can further actualize and move toward soul. Soul is not about being a goody-goody, or not making mistakes or never hurting - it's about being alive. There is nowhere to hide from life. We can become numb or deny it, but that only leaves us listless and depressed and makes life feel meaningless. Why not go with the flow and embrace our spirit nature.

The question whether soul and body are identical, therefore, is as superfluous as to ask whether wax and the shape imprinted on it are identical, or, in general whether the material of a thing is identical with the thing of which it is the material. "Is" and "one" have various meanings, but in their most legitimate meaning they connote the fully actual character of a thing. ~ Aristotle

Surrender

The internal position of surrender is a recognition that I am not in control of every event or circumstance of my life. It is a chosen sense of powerlessness, it frees me from my illusion of control.

The take-charge person knows how to work with the natural flow of events and personalities in order to accomplish something; letting providence and individual creativity play a role.

The controlling person attempts to manipulate people and situations to conform to his/her idea of what is right. This person shuts down the creative possibilities.

The concept of surrender runs contrary to the Westernmind. We have been taught to aggressively go after what we want, to make things happen. But surrender asks us to allow events to unfold at their own pace, to get out of our own way and to let go of our desire for control. Surrender is an act of trust in the universe, an acknowledgment that there are forces beyond our own will at work. Most people ask for happiness on condition. Happiness can only be felt if you don't set any condition. ~ Arthur Rubenstein