Whenever we picture ourselves, there is one image that rarely, if ever, enters into our mental movie: that of being someone who is ready to fall apart. But truthfully, few of us see ourselves in any self-comprising light at all. We feel safe within the dimly lit theatre of our own circle-of-self-pictures and we return to it often -- especially when the harsh light of reality starts to break through and show us we may not be as together as we'd like to think. This is why we need the truth in our lives. The truth is what allows us to see reality without being frightened about what we see. Part of the Truth's rescuing action is to reveal to us that we are not apart from what we see. From this unique, inner-vantage point, the light of reality isn't harsh -- it's Home. The more of this light we can welcome into our circle-of-self and its cast of 1,001 self-images, the easier it becomes to let go. Why? Because we aren't losing anything except for what has been keeping us in the darkness.
"What makes you angry or anxious?"
"When things don't go the way I want them to."
"In other words, you've pictured how things should be, and when life doesn't confirm these pictures, you get negative in one way or another."
"Yes, that about describes it. What are you getting at?"
"Let's work together at this. You said that when life doesn't confirm your self-pictures -- your hope of future security, love in relationships, or whatever it is -- then some kind of stress or unhappiness comes up as these pictures of yours begin to fall apart. This shows us that within your present way of thinking, you believe your future happiness actually depends upon these pictures. This is why, as your pictures begin to crumble, so do you!"
"Yes, but why do I get angry or anxious?"
"Because these punishing emotions are part of a subtle system of self-subterfuge that accomplishes two dark things at once: it keeps the problem alive, and at the same time, it keeps the real solution out of sight."
"What is the problem?"
"Essentially, it is a lack of understanding about your true nature. You are about to discover that you are not who you think you are. No matter how attractive or repulsive, you are not any picture you may be holding of yourself."
"And what is the real solution?"
"Go ahead and let yourself fall apart!"
"What? That's going to take some explanation!"
"And there is one if you will go through the experience; but for now, here is the intelligence behind this unexpected answer: you are not what will fall apart. Who you are can never fall apart. What will collapse is the haunted house of self-flattering and security-seeking pictures you had mistakenly identified as a solution to your shaky life. These pictures are not the solution to your shakiness, they are the source of it."