“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

(As we sat waiting I read to Jane pages 4 and 5 of the private session for October 22, 1973—excellent material concerning the contrasts displayed by Jane’s parents. Seth had discussed her father’s laxness, and her mother’s drive toward purpose, power, and control, and how Jane had felt that she must make a choice between the two modes of behavior. Not realizing that she could choose her own independent course. The session and others dating from that time offers very good insights into Jane’s choice of actions over the years. “Well, I guess he’s gotten turned on by what you just read,” she said now—for now she felt that Seth was ready to come through. She’d been waiting impatiently for some time for you-know-who to put in an appearance.)

Ruburt should read that session (for October 22, 1973) and ones immediately previous. The attitudes still stand to some important degree. The contrast represented his own interpretation of his private reality, of course—yet they also represent the main issues involved right now in your society at large.

In others words, you often expect too much of yourselves. This makes you dwell upon any difficulties, so that any blemishes are overly emphasized, any accomplishments taken for granted, and you are left with a sense of disapproval. (Pause.) Then you lack trust in yourselves because you try to live up to images that are not connected with your backgrounds, and often ignore them. What you have learned seems as nothing, because you forget how your attitudes changed.

When you ask why you did not understand when you were young what you know now, you are ignoring the validity of your own past to some extent, and denying the accomplishments that have resulted—because it seems that you should now be much further on, so that you create a kind of artificial self who began where you are now, and with whom it seems you can never catch up.

There is no need saying Ruburt would be in better physical condition perhaps if the psychic development has not happened—since that development was a part of his natural growth processes. While it may sound unrealistic, the fact remains that much of Ruburt’s problems are indeed caused by a constant comparison with the self that he is, and the self that he and you think he should be (long pause), and to some extent by too much concern about what the world may think or not think.