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One benefit of the movie for me was to take perspective on the nature of reality, which seems to be largely a subjective experience. This perspective always helps me not take life too seriously and to remember that we can control a very small amount of our world. We can do the best we can, that's all. ]]> General http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=333 Sun, 22 Aug 2010 10:49:17 -0700 http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=331
The course I taught yesterday was focused on "spiritually-orientated counseling." Along with appreciating the interest and engagement of the students, I was struck again by the power of spiritual presence in our lives, and by how lost we can get when we lose touch with it. The class generated various definitions of spirituality, including my favorite:

"Anything that helps us gain perspective beyond our small mind/consciousness and realize something larger than ourselves."

When we define spirituality this broadly, almost anything can be a spiritual experience. What matters most is if it is life-affirming.
]]> General http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=331 Sun, 11 Jul 2010 09:49:20 -0700 http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=329
As a professor at Portland State University, I regularly come across college students who seem to be personifying success at their stage in life, in this culture. For example, they are getting good grades, have friends, are learning about intimtae relationships, are enjoying the freedom and exploration of young adulthood, and are engaging in the differentiation process with their families.

But, what is success in adulthood? Many adults in mainstream U.S. culture define success with factors such as jobs, careers, financial attainment, marriage/intimate partnerships, families/kids, etc. I think that part of what makes life so challenging for many adults is the lack of "shadow" behaviors that fit into this model of success. Where is the grit or edginess of going to work everyday? Where is the deeper meaning? In such conditions, no wonder why so many people have affairs or act out their shadows in ways that bring pain. ]]> General http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=329 Mon, 26 Apr 2010 10:57:00 -0700 http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=325
"The acceptance of oneself is the essence of the whole moral problem and
the epitome of a whole outlook on life. That I feed the hungry, that I
forgive an insult, that I love my enemy in the name of Christ - all
these are undoubtedly great virtues. What I do unto the least of my
brethren, that I do unto Christ. But what if I should discover that the
least amongst them all, the poorest of all the beggars, the most
impudent of all the offenders, the very enemy himself - that these are
within me, and that I myself stand in need of the alms of my own
kindness - that I myself am the enemy who must be loved - what then? As
a rule, the Christian's attitude is then reversed; there is no longer
any question of love or long-suffering; we say to the brother within us
"Raca," and condemn and rage against ourselves. We hide it from the
world; we refuse to admit ever having met this least among the lowly in
ourselves."

For me the quote speaks to the shadow within us all. More on this to come.
]]> General http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=325 Mon, 19 Apr 2010 10:31:00 -0700 http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=327
Carl Jung proposed that we have the kernels of all human and animal experiences within us all. Archetypes, images and symbols of all experiences, are past down to us all and are available in the collective unconscious. We already know about all forms of existence: from love to depravity, from control and structure to freedom and spontaneity, from joy to despair, etc etc. Kernels of it all are within all of us.

What are the implications of this? I will be spending the next several posts beginning to address this. ]]> General http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=327 Thu, 8 Apr 2010 10:36:00 -0700 http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=323 General http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=323 Thu, 1 Apr 2010 11:28:00 -0700 http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=319 General http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=319 Sat, 27 Mar 2010 20:59:00 -0700 http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=321 General http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=321 Tue, 23 Mar 2010 21:03:00 -0700 http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=317 General http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=317 Sat, 20 Mar 2010 20:56:00 -0700 http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=315 General http://reclaimingyourrealself.com/index.php?itemid=315 Wed, 17 Mar 2010 20:52:00 -0700