Deeper Issues

I love it when I am in the presence of people who are willing and wanting to look at themselves, and in this case, are trying to understand this disentangle material further and how it might relate to them.

I love it when I am in the presence of people who already get this material, who are wise to their over-controllingness or tendencies to people-please, fix, or over-function in someone else’s life.

I love it when someone says to me, “Oh, I bet the outcome of this work is happiness.”

The outcome of this work can be happiness, serenity, centeredness, and healthy growth for all involved.

Two wonderful radio interviews this morning filled me with these good feelings that can come from healthy conversations and efforts to really understand each other and to understand our self.

I say these things not because I am trying to sell books.

I say these things because I truly believe that our functioning as parents, friends, family members, community members, and creators of our social and political worlds involves us being willing to really stop and look at our self and see what we are bringing to our interactions with other people.

Beyond awareness campaigns and public information services, I believe I need to be willing to look at my deeper issues that keep me re-creating patterns of interactions that result in conflict, dissonance, alienation, and isolation for both my self and other(s). It is my willingness to do this self-examination and the work that follows that holds hope for the peace we all want.