Psychotherapy Beccles Suffolk
What to do in the darkness, by Marilyn Chandler McEntyre
Go slowly.
Consent to it
but don’t wallow in it.
Know it as a place of germination
and growth.
Remember the light.
Take an outstretched hand if you find one.
Exercise unused senses.
Find the path by walking it.
Practise trust.
Wait for dawn
‘Hanging onto grudges and entertaining vengeful fantasies ultimately weakens rather than empowers the self because what we do not forgive, we are doomed to live out.’ J P Pingleton
‘Every person has a vocation to be someone; but they must understand that in order to fulfil this vocation they can only be one person: themself.’ From Thomas Merton
‘Yearning for a new way will not produce it. Only ending the old way can do that. You cannot hold onto the old, all the while declaring that you want something new. The old will defy the new; the old will deny the new; the old will decry the new. There is only one way to bring in the new. You must make room for it.’ Neale Donald Walsch
’Winter is the season of waiting. It requires great trust and a willingness to believe that this angst will not last forever. Even though all appears dead and void of movement, there is quiet growth taking place. During the darkness, gestation occurs…… In the unmoving soil, flower bulbs are strengthened for their future journey upward toward the sun. In the frozen human heart, the silent seeds of confidence are prepared for amazing new growth.’ Rupp and Wiederkehr, ‘The Circle of Life
In this season, we find large spaces left where something beautiful once lived. As one by one the leaves let go, a precious emptiness appears on the trees. The naked beauty of the branches can be seen, the birds’ abandoned nests become visible……. This is an important autumn lesson – when certain things fall away, there are other things that can be seen more clearly. Joyce Rupp and Macrina Wiederkehr
‘Autumn stands as an epiphany to the truth that all things are passing and even in the passing there is beauty…… This is a decaying season, but the rotting ritual that surrounds us has another face. Compost and mulch are food for the soil. There is life in the dying….. As we face the painful reality that nothing lasts forever, autumn teaches us humility. We learn to honor the dying. Everything is moving, flowing on to something new.’ Macrina Wiederkehr and Joyce Rupp
‘What is beginner’s mind? It is dropping our expectations and preconceived ideas about something, and seeing things with an open mind, fresh eyes, just like a beginner.’ Leo Babuta
‘……peace lies not in the avoidance of conflict but in avoiding internalising and acting out conflict, or colluding with the powers and dynamics of conflict within the systems by which we order our societies. It begins with our small, insignificant selves saying no to every thought, word and attitude that is an aggressive approach to the other and living a daily yes to all that lives…..’ Gemma Simmonds
‘People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don’t even recognise: a blue sky, white clouds, curious eyes of a child – our own two eyes. All is a miracle. Thich Nhat Hanh
