In his novella, The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint Exupery reveals the secret of the fox, “Only the heart can rightly see.” Having a heart gives us compassion and reverence for others and the world around us. It gives us respect for the differences and uniqueness of others and the ability to reach out to those in need. Having a heart enables us to live life richly and enjoy the simple pleasures even if we aren’t financially wealthy. It allows us to open our eyes and ears, to take notice of the beauty and wonder that is all around us. Having a heart gives us the capacity to both give and receive love.
I have been a therapist and teacher for many years and have had the privilege to present my work throughout Canada, the USA, and Scandinavia. I have met and worked with thousands of people. Everyone I have met basically wants the same things: to open their heart, to love, to let go of depressive thinking and beliefs that shut life out. Everyone I have worked with wants to be inspired again, to feel their greatness and to awaken their imagination. Our anxiety and fear stems from our inability to draw upon these inner resources and to live the life a deeper part of us knows we are capable of. Once we connect with this deeper wisdom, our life is transformed. Talk therapy, insight therapy, and prescribed drugs typically will not help us make the connection. Imagination and dynamic imagery work will.
Imagination is always our way out of whatever is making us feel trapped. Imagination offers us possibilities, opens doors, and helps us reach beyond the places where we are stuck. Imagination activates all of our senses so that we can see new opportunities, feel alive again, hear the music, smell the flowers, reinvent ourselves, and begin to take the steps which will lead us in a new direction.
American Psychologist Abraham Maslow once wrote, “The person in the peak experience usually feels himself at the peak of his powers. He feels more intelligent, more perceptive, wittier, stronger, and more graceful than at other times.”
Maslow was a mystic, as was C.G. Jung and Mother Teresa. Mysticism is not as esoteric as one might think. I will be teaching a new class in Calgary, August 20-21 at the Spiritual Directions Centre on the topic of Mysticism. It is a two-day course on how to awaken your own inner mystic, how to open your heart again, tap into your intuition and wiser self, to be inspired again, and to let your imagination soar. The work is exciting, fun, very fulfilling, and life-changing.
John A. Tamiazzo is the author of, Returning to the Land of Oz, available at Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, and Barnesandnoble.com
No comments:
Post a Comment