JUST INSTRUCTIVE
I was supposed to call someone and I forgot. When I remember later I criticize myself. “How disrespectful can I be. I treated my friend so bad. I am terrible. I am not a good friend. I am mean!”
Every moment we are constantly determining whether our action is good or bad? Right or wrong? Is this something that I want or don’t? We are always placing value on what we experience. We interpret the value of our actions as an index of our self-worth. What would life be like if we didn’t have to judge it? If we could see experience with an eye of equanimity. The segue to doing this is to not focus on the content of what is experienced but what it represents!
In the above example I judge myself. On the surface level it is about being a disrespectful adult. However, the reality is that since my childhood I have always had a need to be perfect in order to feel safe, loved and worthy. Failure in calling my friend triggered the memory of my inner child wounding. The core reason for the criticism is the belief that the action of the sense of self is at fault. Instead of judging whether our sense of self has acted in a way that is congruent or incongruent with who we believe we are, can we bring awareness and discernment into this process of selfing? Can we recognize that the intentionality of all experience is skillful as it is an attempt to keep one safe, loved and worthy.
Can we examine each moment to see what is being revealed about the foundation for our sense of self? It is neither positive or negative, just informative by pointing to our truth and what we can learn.
In each moment ask yourself:
“What can I learn about myself from this moment?“
by Dr. Phil Blustein
June 2, 2023