journey to self discovery

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Page 1: Journey To Self Discovery

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THE PATHWAY OF LIFETHE PATHWAY OF LIFEA JOURNEY TO A JOURNEY TO

SELF DISCOVERYSELF DISCOVERY

Page 2: Journey To Self Discovery

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THE SIDEWALK OF LIFETHE SIDEWALK OF LIFEMetaphors and Life

Metaphors can help us understand life. A metaphor compares dissimilar things on the basis of some underlying commonality. A new insight or broadened understanding is created.

Metaphors belong to the larger class of symbols. The word symbol comes from two Greek root words meaning "to throw" and "together." The word symbol therefore means "to throw together." This is what a symbol does. When you cannot say what something is, you can say what it is like. A symbol throws together a subject that is not understood with an image that is understood in an attempt to throw light on the subject. It compares or throws together one thing that we do understand with something we do not understand in order to help us understand the thing that we do not understand. (Now, do you understand?) Symbols take us from a concrete, surface level of understanding to a greater depth of meaning. Metaphors do the same

.Life is like... Thinking of life as a journey is a metaphor. We can think of life's journey in many different ways. From our beginning life is taking us to a destination with challenging adventures along the way. Life may be seen as an ocean voyage across unknown depths where storms occasionally toss us about as we seek the safety of calm shores. An old bluegrass song tells us that life is like journeying on a mountain railway with hills, tunnels, dangerous curves and the need of a brave engineer.

Other metaphors speak of life as a wheel taking us through the circularity of change. Life may be seen as a spiral leading us upward in our growth towards maturity. The movie character, Forest Gump, says that, "Life is like a box chocolates. You never know what you will get." Take a chance and see what happens. Metaphors of life give us a vision of the life process and help us to understand what is required for the essential tasks of psychological and spiritual growth.

Portia Nelson's delightful and insightful story of the hole in the sidewalk provides another metaphor of life. Life is like a stroll down a somewhat hazardous sidewalk. The story identifies the key feature required to safely navigate life's sidewalk. Let’s read and discover the lessons in each chapter.

Page 3: Journey To Self Discovery

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THERE'S A HOLE IN MY SIDEWALKTHERE'S A HOLE IN MY SIDEWALKAutobiography in Five Short ChaptersAutobiography in Five Short Chapters

By Portia Nelson

Chapter OneI walk down the street.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.I fall in.I am lost .. I am helpless.It isn't my fault.It takes forever to find a way out.

Chapter ThreeI walk down the same street.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.I see it is there.I still fall in ... it's a habit ... but, my eyes are open.I know where I am.It is my fault.I get out immediately.

Chapter TwoI walk down the street.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I pretend that I don't see it.I fall in again.I can't believe I am in this same place.But, it isn't my fault.It still takes a long time to get out.

Chapter FourI walk down the same street.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.I walk around it..

Chapter FiveI walk down another street

Page 4: Journey To Self Discovery

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Chapter OneChapter One“I walk down the street.“I walk down the street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I fall in.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I fall in.I am lost ... I am helpless It isn't my fault.I am lost ... I am helpless It isn't my fault.

It takes forever to find a way out."It takes forever to find a way out."

Thinking over this chapter, recall your journey down the sidewalk of life. What has your experience been? What good times have you had? Do you remember some of the difficult times? Most importantly consider the question, "Have you ever fallen in to one of the holes in the sidewalk?" Have you been minding you own business when the bottom fell out? Have you suddenly found yourself in a pit of frustration, anger, anxiety, resentment, grief, or despair? Have you confronted loss, change, and challenge that caught you by surprise and seemed out of your control?

• Chapter One is sometimes true and tells us exactly how life is. Sometimes as you walk down the sidewalk of life you wind up in a deep hole that is not of your own making.

– If you live on the coast during hurricane season the winds and rains may have come along and damaged your house.

– The company you work for may have gone bankrupt you lost your job. – You return to your car in the mall parking lot and find that someone has smashed your fender. – The death of friend brings grief.

Any of these events can place you in a hole of darkness, despair, anger, loss, anxiety, worry, or grief. You did not have anything to do with creating the situation but you must live with it. The hole can indeed be deep and dark, and you have to struggle long and hard to climb out of it.

This is the nature of life. Some things are out of your control. Unexpected events happen. Change always occurs. The most that you can do is adapt to them the best you can. You must struggle out of the hole into which you were thrown and journey on. Hopefully, you grow from such an experience and become a more mature person who is better able to cope with other pitfalls of life.

Page 5: Journey To Self Discovery

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Chapter TwoChapter Two"I walk down the street."I walk down the street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I fall in again.I fall in again.I can't believe I am in this same place.I can't believe I am in this same place.

But, it isn't my fault.But, it isn't my fault.It still takes a long time to get out.“It still takes a long time to get out.“

• With Chapter Two the question to consider is, "Have you ever found yourself in exactly the same hole more than once?“

– Are you in exactly the same bad relationship (but with a different person) for the twentieth

time? Are you starting to wonder how all of these jerks find you?

– How is it that you always get into the same type of conflict with the boss? She is so negative and critical and always expects so much. She makes you feel miserable.

– Maybe you are in the midst of the exact "word for word" argument with your spouse for the ten thousandth time. He says this and you say that just like you always do and you fall into the hole once again.

– Your son, mother, sister, or brother does that thing that they always do. It pushes your buttons and you respond as you always do. The cycle of conflict begins once again.

• You cannot believe that it has happened one more time. You wonder, "Why does this always happen to me? Why do they always do this to me? When will they ever stop? Why can’t they understand what they make me do?" If other people would just "act right" life would go better. You begin to work harder and harder to get others to change.

Page 6: Journey To Self Discovery

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Chapter ThreeChapter Three"I walk down the same street."I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I see it is there.I see it is there.I still fall in ... it's a habit ... but, my eyes are open.I still fall in ... it's a habit ... but, my eyes are open.

I know where I am.I know where I am. It is my fault.It is my fault.I get out immediately."I get out immediately."

• Chapter Three challenges us to wake up. Fall into the same hole often enough and you may come to a realization. With the frequent occurrence of the same or similar events you sense that these things do not happen by chance. Maybe this repetition is a pattern that is not just inflicted on you solely by others. Such a reoccurrence of events must mean that you are playing a role in creating them.

• Fall into the same "hole" often enough and you might wake up. – As we go along the sidewalk of life we all fall into holes of psychological and spiritual distress.

Sometimes it seems that we were shoved. Initially, it appears that it is not our fault to be in such a situation once again. However, as we continue in the journey of life we often find ourselves falling into the same hole more than once. When we do so we are given the opportunity of recognizing that there is actually a pattern in our lives. Patterns do not exist until an event happens more than once. A pattern cannot be recognized until we have encountered a situation (in all its various forms) several times. Only with repetition is it possible to see the pattern or cycle. Once the pattern is seen then the possibility of new insight arises.

• The next time you find yourself once again in one of life’s familiar holes, and are busy saying: • "It is not my fault," • "Don't blame me." • "Who is responsible for this?" • "They are doing it to me again."

Page 7: Journey To Self Discovery

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Chapter Three (Continued)"I walk down the same street."I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I see it is there.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I see it is there.I still fall in ... it's a habit ... but, my eyes are open.I still fall in ... it's a habit ... but, my eyes are open.

I know where I am. It is my fault.I know where I am. It is my fault.I get out immediately."I get out immediately."

Ask yourself, "What did I do to get here.“

• Call for a time-out. Now, look to see how you might be responsible for your situation. Ask yourself, "What did I do to get here? What role did I play in creating the circumstances that placed me in this hole?" The terrible truth is that if you are not responsible for being in this hole once again then you are in real trouble. This is because if you are not responsible, it must mean that someone is. Maybe, it is not just one person but a group of people like your coworkers or your family. It is even possible that the entire world has decided to conspire against you. If you are truly not responsible for your current situation, and you do not like being in these recurring holes then you face a dilemma. What you have to do is find out who is making you miserable. Next, you have to change that person, or group, or the entire world to make it or them be exactly the way you want them to be so that you can be okay. Your strategy becomes to change others.

• This is the trap of playing, "Let's fix you." Husbands and wives and parents and children often play this game. One spouse shows up at the counselor's office claiming that their mate is the problem. Parents bring in the child saying the child's behavior needs to change. Children say that their parents make them act this way. Employees blame the insensitive boss. The overworked boss criticizes the inefficient employees. No one is responsible for anything.

The game of "Let's fix you" does not work.

• Playing "Let’s fix you" doesn’t work. Have you ever tried to change someone? Of course you have. Maybe just change a small child making them just a little more the way you want. Perhaps you have tried to make a few minor adjustments in another person’s personality. It seems that if you just gave this person a little bit of a "tune up" then you might be able to live with them. Did you succeed? The answer is, "No!" Changing others is an extremely difficult if not impossible task. The other person may actually try to cooperate but often cannot make or sustain the change. Your effort is directed in the wrong direction.

The "good news" is that you are responsible

• Fall into the same hole enough times and you might awaken to the true nature of the problem. You are responsible for being there. You played some role in the process. You must change. Learning this is good news. If you can find out what you are doing and stop then you can avoid these holes into which you keep falling. Having some responsibility for your problems means that you have control. All you have to do is to change yourself and the situation can improve. While this task is very hard, it is at least possible. Changing others is not.

Page 8: Journey To Self Discovery

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Chapter Three (Continued)Chapter Three (Continued)"I walk down the same street."I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I see it is there.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I see it is there.I still fall in ... it's a habit ... but, my eyes are open.I still fall in ... it's a habit ... but, my eyes are open.

I know where I am. It is my fault.I know where I am. It is my fault.I get out immediately."I get out immediately."

• When you find yourself once again in that same bad relationship, but with a different person, you need to realize that it is you who is making the same mistake over and over. Maybe it is time to ask yourself, "What am I doing?" "How did I get here once again?"

• When you are in that same tired old argument, ask what did you do to get there? When you wake up with a hangover once again, ask what went wrong with my resolve to never drink again?

• When you discover what you are doing, or why you are doing it, then change is possible. You can begin taking responsibility for yourself.

Change yourself.• If you change yourself your experience of the situation will change. Surprisingly, if you do this, the other people you

wanted to change may change as well. You cannot change others by directly trying to influence them, but if you change yourself then they may be forced to change as well. Once you are different and can maintain that difference then others around you are given the opportunity to change in relation to you. By effectively changing ourselves we may actually change another person, a group, and perhaps, the world. But we must start with ourselves. When you start with yourself a good place to begin is with your "Attitude.“

• Whenever life acts we respond. If you win the lottery you might be happy. If you lose your job you may be angry. Whatever your reaction it will depend upon your attitude. Fortunately, we control our attitudes.

In determining how we face life it is our attitude that is the key. See whether or not you agree with the following statement.

"You are responsible for all of your experiences of life."

This statement is absolutely true but it is somewhat of a trick. The trick is that it does not say "in life" but "of life." You are not responsible for everything that happens to you, but you are responsible for how you react to what does happen to you. The formula is that, "Life acts. You react." Your reaction is under your control. In any life situation you are always responsible for at least one thing. You are always responsible for the attitude towards the situation in which you find yourself. Your attitude is your reaction to what life hands you. You can have either a more positive or a more negative attitude. Your attitude is under your control and can be changed. With the right attitude you can be a resilient person.

Page 9: Journey To Self Discovery

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Chapter FourChapter Four"I walk down the same street."I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.I walk around it."I walk around it."

• Chapter Four is indeed a new chapter in your life. Once your responsibility is seen you can change. You can begin avoiding the holes on that street of life. You are now able to see what is coming, because you know your pattern. This knowledge gives you control and you can intentionally respond to life in a different manner. A different response gives new possibilities.

• When someone invites you into a familiar hole, you do not automatically enter. Your friend, who has been awaiting your arrival to leave for a party, sarcastically says, "Well, you are late again!" Your typical response is to defensively say, "Must you always complain?" Now when you see that familiar hole of an argument and a bad evening looming, you make a different choice. You realize that your friend has had the legitimate frustration of waiting and has also been worried about you. You speak to these issues and say, "I am sorry to be late. Traffic was terrible. I couldn’t get to a phone. I know that you were wondering what happened to me." Your choice allows your friend to acknowledge the concern and apprehension rather that just voice the frustration of waiting. The hole of another repetitive fight is avoided, and the evening goes well.

Page 10: Journey To Self Discovery

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Chapter FiveChapter Five"I walk down another street.""I walk down another street."

• Chapter Five is a new day. Finally, you change streets. You change your inner dialogue and behavior so completely that the old pattern no longer occurs. Once on the new street, you must be careful because, unfortunately, this street will have its own holes. It will have holes that you have never seen before. But you now know the rules about the "holes" in the sidewalk. The first time that you encounter one you should ask, "How am I responsible?" It may be that you are not responsible, but the sooner you ask this question, the sooner you can take charge of your life.

• This process is like a spiral that leads us upward towards psychological and spiritual wholeness. The sidewalks of life do not go in a straight line. They may not be flat. They may be like a trail that winds round and round a mountain until it reaches the top. Each time you break out of an old pattern of thinking and living, you begin a new switchback that leads you ever upwards to the fundamental goal of life.

Fall into enough holes and you become "Whole." Fall into enough of the holes in the sidewalks of life and you may become whole. Through the lessons of the holes of life, you approach wholeness. Becoming whole means striving to be all that you can be. All potentialities are explored. You know what you do, and why you do it. Choices are made, and you are responsible for these choices. The holes in the sidewalk are actually invitations to grow. Are you open to the invitation?

Page 11: Journey To Self Discovery

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The Romance of Self-Discovery The Romance of Self-Discovery Is an Endless Process…Is an Endless Process…

Enjoy Every MomentEnjoy Every Moment