“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

Now any other physical arena of that kind, opened, is highly beneficial because of that literal-mindedness, and each time this happens the predominating beliefs are to that extent weakened. Here is something else that he can do. He has proven it to himself, therefore. He is free to move in that regard.

Your life is not—and I repeat—not as limited as you believe it is. You are not using the freedoms that you have. These freedoms used, particularly in view of Ruburt’s literal-mindedness, would do much to weaken the beliefs in powerlessness that exist.

Before he did not believe he could handle that consciously, so it is important. Not that you go camping or not go camping, but that you realize the freedoms that you have; use them, encourage any physical ideas of that nature that he has, and do not make him feel inadequate to try.

He feels inadequate enough in that regard. Give us a moment. You, who do not have the physical difficulty, should now make an effort to initiate such things on your own. Ruburt realizes that he must no longer structure his life through his symptoms. You must realize that also, for there your ideas of limitation simply prolong them.

Before we get to your questions: if you want any more sessions from me on this matter, then each of you are to keep a list of any improvements you notice in Ruburt’s condition. You may not notice the same things. Your lists do not have to coincide, but you are each to keep such a list. Is that agreed upon?

Such structuring impedes your progress to a large degree, and prevents improvements that could occur. I have told you about the importance of imagination, both in building up and destroying beliefs, but you still do not understand completely.

You do not understand the alterations in beliefs involved that even led him for example to think of that mobility, and how cleverly the idea of work and mobility were combined, or the attempt at correlation involved. The same applies to the karate body image, its significance escaping both of you largely, where Ruburt was seeing himself with a body image combining power, agility, and weight.

The karate image for him is a good one, far more evocative, intuitive, and powerful than his idea say of doing exercises, for it combines, for him, intuitive understanding with physical strength and agility.

Do you want a break before your questions?

Your eating arrangement (in Apartment 5) occurred and in its way helped to stop the loss of weight. The dress was worn deliberately. He was ashamed to be seen in it, and yet it serves a beneficial purpose, for his own love of his body will automatically cause it to gain weight. His pride will do it for him. He was afraid it would make you feel worse. Yet the continuing cover-up physically denies the needed feedback that would be quite automatic as he looks into a mirror for example and knows well he needs to gain more weight.

This, you see, is connected with the trailer idea, and I am telling you because you still do not understand the importance of belief and imagination combined. He has gone ahead despite, in this case, your negative interpretation, and seen himself under certain conditions traveling in a trailer, writing, granted, but in front of strangers in a bathing suit or shorts, and he does not want to look like a bony witch. So already in his mind he is gaining weight, seeing himself fairly agile—but he felt this was in spite of your attitudes, not with your enthusiasm or understanding.

Give us a moment. I mentioned and suggested his rising very early for several reasons, knowing full well a challenge and resistance would result. The morning stiffness has to do now with subsidiary beliefs and expectations, and also with the natural condition of the body in its present shape.

When he gets up ahead of you he feels gleeful. He has put one over on you for a change, where usually he sees you as coming out ahead in that regard. He is also relieved that you do not see him immediately, and this alone lessons the stress, for he is afraid that his condition bleakens your morning.

He has felt a love for wherever you lived, and an abiding love for you, but also some conflicts involving the housewifely chores and the writing. You help often, and have always done so, but he felt that because of the male-female relationship any help you gave was something he should be thankful for, that you were doing it out of the extra goodness of your heart—that he should not have to be grateful.

It served a purpose, showing him what his body was capable of, and raises the question of why he was not using it. In all this I must tell you however that you both do still concentrate upon the negative element, and ignore the power of anticipation and its values in changing beliefs.

Ruburt must assure himself that he can perform adequately physically, that this is physically possible, and then that he can do it while using his full abilities as a writer, as a creative person.

It also provides Ruburt however with constant stress, as he becomes consciously aware of other distractions, in his terms—physical wishes to do things that come in conflict with his staying at his table.