“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

(Note that I managed to finish Tuesday’s session last night after all, by working a bit later. Jane read it. By bedtime at midnight she had some things to say about the content of my notes—defending herself to some extent, naturally, and I told her to type her notes and add them to the session today. She made some good points, but I didn’t agree on others. At least, I thought, while talking she showed more animation than she had in some time.

(Today, however, she didn’t do the notes. She slept late, spent time at her table in the living room, read the mail—which contained some excellent pieces, by the way —but as far as I know did no notes or other writing.

I would like to make a few comments regarding “programs”—that is, certainly it must seem to you both that you begin many therapeutically designed programs only to have them disappear. There is a rhythm to such programs, however, and it is natural for the self to rouse at certain times, begin such activity, then apparently (underlined) discard them.

They begin with a certain impetus, give you a certain kind of progress, and regardless of how great or small that progress may be, there is a necessary time of assimilation—that is, the stimulation over a period of time is more effective when it is in a fashion intermittent, when certain methods are tried out, applied and so forth, but by the very nature of the healing process there is also the necessity of letup, diversion and looking away.

Reading the sessions of the Magical Approach with some consistency is now in order, where for example I might counsel at another time that they be set aside for a while. In this case at this time, however, they can serve as valuable springboards to release from your own creative areas new triggers for inspiration and understanding, and hence for therapeutic development. That should be a part of the program, in other words, regardless of what Ruburt intends to do bookwise with those sessions.

(Long pause at 8:51.) Give us a moment.... In a like manner, it may seem childish—or worse, futile—when after all this time Ruburt still has the feeling that changing his room around will somehow help bring about the overall solution to any problem. Yet the feeling is the result of the natural person’s knowledge of the symbolic nature both of objects and thoughts, and of the rhythmic patterns that both follow, so that, again, on such occasions such activities do trigger new unconscious activity and set up new patterns of organization.

The thing is, of course, that I have only been able to describe the surface of such activities. On the other hand, there is no reason why when you are ready you cannot enjoy the fruits of that abundance. You use energy without understanding how it works, so obviously you do not need a detailed map of the inner world to obtain its benefits. You do need a faith in the existence of that reality, however, therefore I suggest that your program once again includes your helping Ruburt change his working space, and that this time you both try it with a kind of loving play, if that is possible. But the attempt, to whatever degree you achieve it, will be of benefit.

Concentration upon them will rise and fall naturally in the entire procedure. Each time they will be understood more and more, become less detrimental, until they are mere annoyances. In the same manner, a few suggestions or reminders, such as those Ruburt already has on tape, should be a portion of the program.

(9:27 PM. I for one was disillusioned, no doubt about it, I thought as Seth spoke. Yet I could agree with Seth in tonight’s session. We slept well and got up early as usual. When we finished breakfast I read the session to Jane. I was still down, but when she described how good the idea of changing things around made her feel, I had to smile. When she asked me what I thought about the session I replied that “we had no choice” but to try to implement it. So we spent the day rearranging her things in the back room, and finished by nap time. The place looks good, and Jane said it gave her a good feeling, although she had no time to make notes or read. Frank Longwell dropped in as I began moving furniture in the morning, and helped greatly as we repositioned a couple of heavy tables. His visit cheered us up, and seemed to do him some good also. [We paid him the balance due on the front glassed-in porch.])