An Inquiry Sharing
I received a sweet message from a sweet friend of mine who does The Work.
So, I would like to share her inquiry with you.
I feel like I gained a lot from this worksheet on being anxious to tell my parents…
I realised that I am always looking outside myself; my parents, my friends, even the things I own or watch or read, for approval…
I feel like I’m trapped in the illusion of wanting something outside myself and I’m so obsessed with the outcome, that I cannot see reality at all…
I can see that I’m really hurting myself by believing that what I want is outside me and something I must achieve to be happy…
for example, I need to make money, I need to be self-sufficient.
I saw that these thoughts made me feel helpless and like I needed to protect myself from images of the future- like being trapped in a relationship because I was dependent on that person for money.
So I keep forcing myself to make a decision so I can get a job and make money to avoid this future…
It’s like I’m running from an illusion by trying to make this decision.
It feels like I have to make this decision or my fate is decided…
Without my thoughts, reality really is kind.
I misunderstand people’s intentions and put my own beliefs on top of them…in the end, I always feel threatened by the people around me, like they will harm me in some way.
And the images from the past always serve as evidence for this as well.
When I believe that people are harming me, it makes me feel alone and like they don’t love me…
So in the end, I try to please them, but I’m not doing any justice to them or myself because it’s not coming from a truthful place.
I’m just doing it for myself, and I know it too so it really feels like nobody loves me…
When I do a worksheet, I feel like I can finally see the truth of what’s happening without all those thoughts and images in my mind…
In the turn arounds, when I’m allowing what the person is saying,
I feel like I can trust them even though they did nothing for it…
I can simply listen to what is being said without feeling so scared and without even making a decision…
In that place, it almost feels like a dream…
and to me, it feels like it takes a lot of courage to allow someone to speak and simply listen…
From P
For more information about The Work, visit TheWork.com
You might want to read the Introduction of The Work of Byron Katie by Stephen Mitchell.
