“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

Ruburt’s body is undergoing profound beneficial alterations, for his desire and intent seemingly have changed overnight, relatively speaking. Words, symbols, signs, anything that can be used by a personality, often become a new focus through which probabilities are altered. These are not so much bridge beliefs as bridge intents.

Ruburt’s intent to be responsive is being used in that fashion, and the word with its meanings brings about a juggling or change-about of other important intents, which then change alliances.

The circulatory system, again, is activated. This is noticeable particularly in the feet, and all of the ligaments are beginning to release. This is an overall activation because of the overall intent, and therefore more in balance than the beginning of improvements in the past. The body instantly responds to a new image by activating its entire mechanism. Ruburt does not yet know what his response to the world will be—whether he wants, for example, television shows and so forth, or not—but he is now determined to respond, to be responsive, and not to simply retreat.

That session is extremely valuable. So on your list, write “Do not think in terms of absolutes.” As far as Ruburt’s condition has been concerned, you both have habitually thought so in terms of black and white that you added a narrow, limited area in which improvements might begin, but could only go so far.

Suggestions such as I have given you are meaningless if any improvement is faced by an attitude that says “Such a minute improvement is meaningless,” or “This has happened before, and gone nowhere”—and so I wanted those attitudes completely routed out. I also would greatly like the two of you to remember your own considerable natural creativity, innovative ideas, and usual independence of thought (all amused)—those are your assets. They should be applied with the idea of helping Ruburt to improve.

This happens in any relationship. You have said, I believe, something to the effect that the house or the money meant little in the light of. Ruburt’s condition: meaningless chatter in a way, since if you did not have the money or the house, that would not mean that Ruburt was necessarily in excellent physical condition.

The freedom that the house and the money represent is extremely important to both of you. Ruburt did not put himself in poor physical condition to get those things. His physical symptoms were the result of methods or habits of dealing with himself and the world, and of attitudes that both of you shared for the greater part of your lives.

Since you both held those attitudes and saw those beliefs everywhere reinforced, naturally enough in your experience, then in the overall it would be most miraculously unusual if one of you did not physically retreat. Your nature allowed you to try. You found it intolerable, and recovered. Because of Ruburt’s other characteristics personally, he tried it on for size, and found it fit with considerable chafing. But overall that way of life, to some extent has suited you both.

You wondered in the secret depths of your mind how well-suited Ruburt was for the solitude you believed necessary to produce good work. You intend, both of you, having the cat fixed, so he will not be frustrated inside. Ruburt fixed himself, and fixed it so he could not go outside—because, according to your joint overall attitudes, you believed you must isolate yourselves against the world.

Ruburt felt it would be more difficult for him, so he applied the additional discipline. Only lately have you really made an effort to examine those habits. They have been deeply ingrained. Whenever you apply yourself in such ways, you collect data that seems to support your ideas, so that unless efforts are made to change, the picture becomes grossly exaggerated—and to that extent unrealistic.

(10:03.) Then, you must fight or retreat. Ruburt retreated, but the situation was always in basic terms, artificially formed by your joint beliefs.

I have nothing more to say for the evening, unless you have questions. I will add for Ruburt: as I said, the eyes will continue to improve. Copy for an hour for now. The eyes are still changing, as the ligaments in the neck do, but the muscles in and around the eyes are acclimating well.

As Ruburt’s body becomes more responsive, it means also that he is becoming more responsive not just physically but in all areas. He thinks he feels uncomfortable with other people on such occasions because he is physically uncomfortable, sitting for long periods, or because he feels in an inferior physical condition. Instead, of course, he felt in such a position before the symptoms showed—as each of you felt, and were convinced in black-and-white fashion, that creative people were misunderstood, held in inferior position in the world, and were generally considered oddballs.

Ruburt’s own abilities he considered represented even the furthest reaches of the creative realm, therefore putting him in twice as inferior a position. In the light of your beliefs, the better you considered your own works, the worse your position in society, and your opinion of your fellow men: the better the creator, the worse his social position, the greater the ridicule.

The shoddy, superficial, popular novelist is acclaimed. The original creator is scoffed at. Ruburt could not stand ridicule, and so took a proud retreat. He now understands that retreat denies the responsiveness natural to the body, mind, and spirit.

Ruburt’s responsiveness will show physically. When he feels he can physically handle guests with some finesse, if not with perfectly normal behavior, you will know that his mental and emotional patterns have changed. You will also know that your emotional and mental attitudes in that regard have changed.

I am not saying that you should refuse guests. When Ruburt is ready, and when you are ready to begin to embark upon relationships with others of any import, his condition will show it. We are not speaking simply of guests, but of a willingness on your part to begin relationships—in line with your work, and of direct contacts, planned in advance, of personal contact.

Unexpected visitors are something different entirely. For they require no conscious decisions on your part ahead of time. I am not saying that you should wait at all until Ruburt walks perfectly normally. The situation of attracting the people that you want, will come quite naturally as Ruburt feels more and more competent.

I am more concerned that the ideas of responsiveness be followed now, and that you apply your feelings of creativity to the situation. When Ruburt does not feel ashamed to meet guests, it will seem to him that this is because he is so physically improved. Actually the improvements follow and are the physical materialization of his responsiveness to himself, and to the natural world.

We will then go into that, with other material, at our next session. Ruburt’s interpretation of last night’s dream was correct, and his dream experience will show greater depth and variety now that he has stated his intent by beginning his (dream) notebook.