New Year Resolutions
Excerpt From: Kenneth Wapnick. “Healing the Unhealed Mind.”
Q: In my profession of computers, in the world of illusion where everybody is very serious about their problems, I go into a serious situation and tend to walk in whistling that everything is okay because it is all an illusion. I still do my job and fix the problem, but underneath I know that it is not about that.
A: That’s right, and if you really know that, you won’t get anxious, angry, or frustrated; you won’t get elated when you solve the problem. You will be even and calm throughout. This will be how you know that you are not mouthing the words that the world is an illusion. Knowing this enables you to be with anyone, do anything, be in any part of the world, and still be peaceful. It does not matter because everything is the same. You have honored that New Year’s resolution, “Make this year different by making it all the same…” (T-15.XI.10:11), because you know the problem is not “out there” but “in here” (the mind).
Whatever knowledge and expertise you have that helps you solve problems, whether as a therapist or computer whiz, becomes an excuse for you to teach what you are learning and reinforce its truth in yourself. That is the true meaning of helping others. The teaching comes by being peaceful and defenseless. And the minute you find yourself becoming frustrated or angry, you know you have made the world real again—the mistake. When you catch yourself in that ego trap, simply smile at yourself and say, “Oops, I did it again.” That’s all.
Moreover, you will probably find that you actually get better at your job as a computer programmer. What makes you an ineffective programmer is your anxiety, self-hatred, hatred of others, resentment of what you are being asked to do, and whatever other ego thoughts you have. By getting the ego thoughts out of the way, you have made room for love to come through you and make you a fine programmer, therapist, housewife, parent, child, bricklayer, etc. Regardless of the disparate forms of our many roles, love is the constant content.