FAMILY & RELATIONSHIp

 

The people around us are, in many ways, like mirrors for us. They can reflect back parts of us that we don't really like looking at. This seems to be universally true for humans. Some people don't really affect us at all, and have little or no "charge." Others bring out the best in us, we feel authentic and smart and worthwhile in their presence. Then there are those others who we feel very uncomfortable around; with whom we feel angry and anxious, even rageful, frightened. The odd thing is our primary relationships seem to embody both the positive and negative poles I've described. They are like our guardian angels and our worst enemies all wrapped up into one confusing package. If I were to put a positive spin on all this, (and how can I help it?) I would say that it's all for the good... It's our enemies that reveal to us the ways in which we remain closed to ourselves and others; how we're still hiding our power. It's a wake-up call: time to gather your scattered self together and begin to act with more authority (and with more generosity!) Growth is really not that comfortable—we need to feel that discomfort in order to get ourselves motivated to change.  TB