Bearnstow 2010

I managed to make it to Bearnstow! Two beautiful days of driving and I'm here! There are ten of us taking the workshop and of course Claire Porter leading us. I've enjoyed meeting everyone and getting settled. Each day I'm adding a little reading from Terry Barrett's class. And how fortunate that today I chose the preface to Kitchen Table Wisdom.

At the onset of writing her book, Rachel Naomi Remen was asked by her editor to write an outline. (Remen was unsuccessful with the outline, but successful at putting my mind at rest when it comes to knowing what will come out of this week.)

“What is the book about?” she asked.

I did not know.

“Rachel,” she said. “When you meet a new counseling patient, surely you identify their problem, decide what to do and in what order you need to do it, and make a plan, don’t you?”

I had felt exposed.

“No,” I said. “I don’t know what people need to do or who they need to become. When I first meet with someone, I have no idea where we are going, and where we end up is usually a surprise to us both.”

She sat back in dismay. “Then how do you get quality outcomes?” she asked.

“I just follow the natural process of things."

So that's what I'm going to do....