I, too, recently recognized how much I cherish lack. Like a dog chasing its tail, and when my suffering was unbearable, I felt the truth of it. instead of just telling myself, “I am doing this to myself,” or any course maxim to try and feel better, I saw the truth—I want this! I want the pain, the suffering, the drama! What a beautiful thing to recognize! It brought me one step closer. It helped me to be able to recognize the figure in the dream, who is not the eternal awareness that I am, is just doing what figures in dreams do. Of course figures in the dream lack because it conceals hatred and gives permission for projection. It’s a perfect set up—to be an innocent victim or victimizer—is it not? It reinforces the one problem I believe I have—that I am a separate self and so are you!
Thank you for sharing and for your consistency in emphasizing relationship.
Thank you so much Sean. This brought a warm gentle smile and strength in my heart, which I need so much on this journey. Finding this author, feels a long and painful journey sometimes (well, most of the times for me 😊). But as long as we remember not to forget that it is only painful to ego, all will be well, all is well😊
Sean, I breathe a little safer having absorbed your generous insights. You have helped us all remember we are not really trapped inside our horror movies. It is always a choice. Our habits are needlessly creating new scary movies. We perversely keep the imprisonment of aloneness going. We survive because we occasionally create vacations and the drama
subsides a bit. This morning you have shown us all that we can repeatedly shake ourselves out of our bad dreams. We can choose to awaken to the only thing that is real. You created another opportunity for each of us to recommit to LOVE. For myself (one who definitely is still trapped in the illusion of separation) I've decided to give myself a 30 day challenge. I want tol remind myself daily that every thought or person in front of me is my mirror and opportunity. I can choose to remind myself to give the love that I am to every person and thought. I trust this practice will help me to actually start believing that I AM LOVE.
From a state of BEING LOVE we can only see, be and act that love. We're all tired of believing the very old story that we are separate, alone and gravely flawed. I'll report back in 30 days .. hopefully I will feel connected and safe enough to share with my fellow travelers. We all love YOUR bravery so much Sean.
Sean there was so much that resonated with me in this that I had to go back and re-read and now I'm going to go back and read again. "I need you to be a friend, so that our friendship might mirror, fractal-like, our forgotten connection to God." This was stunning. The themes of friendship and relationship have been looming large in my mind this week. I am struggling at the moment to know how to "be" with my best friend, 50, who told me three days ago that she has been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. She has 3 small children, one of whom is special needs. I feel like the earth has been pulled out from under my feet. I want to do something, but what? Of course I'll be there for her and her family, on call 24-7 from now on. My new normal will be taking care of 2 families. That's the easy part. But I feel so inadequate to help her face such a dire diagnosis and her own mortality. This tragedy is too huge, raw, impossible still. She is one of the true gifts of my life and selfishly I can't imagine life without her. But her husband and kids! I am so grateful for your unbelievably touching and profound reflections and guidance. These deep dives that remind me so much what is real and what is not. This all feels terribly real right now. I am grateful for the Course in Miracles, as it has completely changed my life/ physical path in a good way. Thank you again so very much.
How lovely that you can write so openly and honestly about yourself. This takes a lot of willingness, authenticity and in some cases courage to look at those aspects of ourselves that we never looked closely at before.
If we all keep moving in the direction of our heart and if we show ourselves compassion for what we learn along the way, we start getting out of our way. We can then allow healing to occur, by allowing aspects of the illusion to be undone in the mind by the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes l feel that l take the process too seriously and l forget to 'lighten up'. If anyone has any suggestions on how to not take the dream too seriously, please share. I often forget it's a dream when l interact with others and all too often start 'making it real', only to remember later. Perhaps that's really okay, and part of the dance of life in this dream...
I’ve read ACIM since it was published. Until just recently I realized I was intellectualizing instead of practicing. Recently I came to A Course in Love through a question on the Foundation for Inner Peace site. For me its simplicity has helped me understand my ACIM study tremendously. After reading ACIM for almost 50 years it’s like a light got turned on in my head.
Sean there is no other way but sharing honesty with others my reading has stopped there’s nothing more to read that I need. I have been given the directions For me following them is impossible without company and as you spoke above lack it was a revelation to me it was my favourite wooden leg my excuse for inaction. As I look back on my life on the course I have learned nothing but I’ve been taught a lot. Last night some nights ago it dawned on me to simply do this be still and lay aside everything let go absolutely. I’m trying to share with you and everyone my pathetic attempts to find the truth as you share with us your journey. This post has been different from others because it spoke volumes about my journey. Thank you so much for your time it’s been invaluable to us sean
Oh Sean, how amazing you are in sharing something so profound and what we consider "real" in our human understanding, and your ability to make it personal and still speak to me who harbours the same feelings of 'lack'. I would like your permission to share this in a little on line newspaper where I write a weekly column and push boundaries to allow some light to come in and awaken those who are ready to remember. This has a readership of over 40K in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. May I share your words with others? Thank you for once again touching my soul at such a deep and loving awareness.
Your words today are some of the clearest I’ve read describing our shared human experience. They will help cement my forgiveness practice/foundation on our journey home. I too think in terms of me, me, me, instead of we, we, we, all too often. I have to remind myself daily that we are all in the same boat together.
Prior to reading this the article this morning I was journaling on how I truly feel deep lack and the fear opening to anything different. Lack and conflict seem to go hand and hand for me, I am in constant conflict with myself, and feel very separate from God. I feel very blessed to be able to even "see" my lack and need for conflict, it is the start of the healing processing with the relationship with myself.
I, too, recently recognized how much I cherish lack. Like a dog chasing its tail, and when my suffering was unbearable, I felt the truth of it. instead of just telling myself, “I am doing this to myself,” or any course maxim to try and feel better, I saw the truth—I want this! I want the pain, the suffering, the drama! What a beautiful thing to recognize! It brought me one step closer. It helped me to be able to recognize the figure in the dream, who is not the eternal awareness that I am, is just doing what figures in dreams do. Of course figures in the dream lack because it conceals hatred and gives permission for projection. It’s a perfect set up—to be an innocent victim or victimizer—is it not? It reinforces the one problem I believe I have—that I am a separate self and so are you!
Thank you for sharing and for your consistency in emphasizing relationship.
Thank you so much Sean. This brought a warm gentle smile and strength in my heart, which I need so much on this journey. Finding this author, feels a long and painful journey sometimes (well, most of the times for me 😊). But as long as we remember not to forget that it is only painful to ego, all will be well, all is well😊
Sean, I breathe a little safer having absorbed your generous insights. You have helped us all remember we are not really trapped inside our horror movies. It is always a choice. Our habits are needlessly creating new scary movies. We perversely keep the imprisonment of aloneness going. We survive because we occasionally create vacations and the drama
subsides a bit. This morning you have shown us all that we can repeatedly shake ourselves out of our bad dreams. We can choose to awaken to the only thing that is real. You created another opportunity for each of us to recommit to LOVE. For myself (one who definitely is still trapped in the illusion of separation) I've decided to give myself a 30 day challenge. I want tol remind myself daily that every thought or person in front of me is my mirror and opportunity. I can choose to remind myself to give the love that I am to every person and thought. I trust this practice will help me to actually start believing that I AM LOVE.
From a state of BEING LOVE we can only see, be and act that love. We're all tired of believing the very old story that we are separate, alone and gravely flawed. I'll report back in 30 days .. hopefully I will feel connected and safe enough to share with my fellow travelers. We all love YOUR bravery so much Sean.
Sean there was so much that resonated with me in this that I had to go back and re-read and now I'm going to go back and read again. "I need you to be a friend, so that our friendship might mirror, fractal-like, our forgotten connection to God." This was stunning. The themes of friendship and relationship have been looming large in my mind this week. I am struggling at the moment to know how to "be" with my best friend, 50, who told me three days ago that she has been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. She has 3 small children, one of whom is special needs. I feel like the earth has been pulled out from under my feet. I want to do something, but what? Of course I'll be there for her and her family, on call 24-7 from now on. My new normal will be taking care of 2 families. That's the easy part. But I feel so inadequate to help her face such a dire diagnosis and her own mortality. This tragedy is too huge, raw, impossible still. She is one of the true gifts of my life and selfishly I can't imagine life without her. But her husband and kids! I am so grateful for your unbelievably touching and profound reflections and guidance. These deep dives that remind me so much what is real and what is not. This all feels terribly real right now. I am grateful for the Course in Miracles, as it has completely changed my life/ physical path in a good way. Thank you again so very much.
How lovely that you can write so openly and honestly about yourself. This takes a lot of willingness, authenticity and in some cases courage to look at those aspects of ourselves that we never looked closely at before.
If we all keep moving in the direction of our heart and if we show ourselves compassion for what we learn along the way, we start getting out of our way. We can then allow healing to occur, by allowing aspects of the illusion to be undone in the mind by the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes l feel that l take the process too seriously and l forget to 'lighten up'. If anyone has any suggestions on how to not take the dream too seriously, please share. I often forget it's a dream when l interact with others and all too often start 'making it real', only to remember later. Perhaps that's really okay, and part of the dance of life in this dream...
Jayney
“ In the beginning was the Thought, and the Thought was with God, and the Thought was God.” T-3.VII.16:2
I’ve read ACIM since it was published. Until just recently I realized I was intellectualizing instead of practicing. Recently I came to A Course in Love through a question on the Foundation for Inner Peace site. For me its simplicity has helped me understand my ACIM study tremendously. After reading ACIM for almost 50 years it’s like a light got turned on in my head.
❤️
Sean there is no other way but sharing honesty with others my reading has stopped there’s nothing more to read that I need. I have been given the directions For me following them is impossible without company and as you spoke above lack it was a revelation to me it was my favourite wooden leg my excuse for inaction. As I look back on my life on the course I have learned nothing but I’ve been taught a lot. Last night some nights ago it dawned on me to simply do this be still and lay aside everything let go absolutely. I’m trying to share with you and everyone my pathetic attempts to find the truth as you share with us your journey. This post has been different from others because it spoke volumes about my journey. Thank you so much for your time it’s been invaluable to us sean
Oh Sean, how amazing you are in sharing something so profound and what we consider "real" in our human understanding, and your ability to make it personal and still speak to me who harbours the same feelings of 'lack'. I would like your permission to share this in a little on line newspaper where I write a weekly column and push boundaries to allow some light to come in and awaken those who are ready to remember. This has a readership of over 40K in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. May I share your words with others? Thank you for once again touching my soul at such a deep and loving awareness.
Thanks Sean ❤️
What a beautiful and loving community you have nurtured in this space, Sean. How full your heart must be. Gassho, my friend.
There was so much good stuff in that ... it read like poetry, felt ... so beautiful. Thank you Sean
Thank you 🙏
An absolutely beautifully written article Sean, as always 🪷
Thanks Sean,
Your words today are some of the clearest I’ve read describing our shared human experience. They will help cement my forgiveness practice/foundation on our journey home. I too think in terms of me, me, me, instead of we, we, we, all too often. I have to remind myself daily that we are all in the same boat together.
Thanks Again ❤️
Gary
Prior to reading this the article this morning I was journaling on how I truly feel deep lack and the fear opening to anything different. Lack and conflict seem to go hand and hand for me, I am in constant conflict with myself, and feel very separate from God. I feel very blessed to be able to even "see" my lack and need for conflict, it is the start of the healing processing with the relationship with myself.