iac@cix.co.uk wrote...

Do you wish to be listed anonymously? No

Which area is your meta4 useful in? When we are disconnected to parts of ourselves we live in a dreamworld, not fully engaged in present reality.

Which country are you in? UK

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In Ancient China there lived a widower with two loving daughters. When his eldest daughter died, he was left with only the youngest, Sen-jo.

Because she was beautiful, many sought her hand, and when she came of age, Sen-jo's father selected a good and prosperous husband for her from among her suitors. But alas, Sen-jo had long before fallen in love with Ochu. They had known each other since playing in childhood, when Sen-jo's father had laughingly told them they were well matched and should get married when they grew up, they took his words to heart.

Imagining they were engaged, they came to love each other deeply. When Sen-jo heard that she was promised to another, she was so distressed she almost fainted. And so greatly grieved was Ochu that he felt he could only withstand the pain of his broken heart by secretly running away.

That evening at midnght he untied his small boat from the village dock and began to paddle downstream. He saw a figure rush out of the bushes and run along the riverbank. It was Sen-jo. They embraced and wept, and Sen-jo climbed into the boat and joined him and they drifted to a remote village downstream.

They married and lived there for five years, starting a farm and raising two children. But in her heart Sen-jo was worried for her father and felt ungrateful to have fled. Her unresolved past haunted her, tingeing her hapiness with grief. When she told Ochu, he admitted that he too was longing for his home.

They immediately decided to return and beg her family's forgiveness. Hiring a larger boat, they took the children upstream and docked in the village at dusk.

When Ochu went to Sen-jo's father to bag for pardon, he was received with bitterness and rejection. Her father would not believe his daughter was in the boat. 'From the day you left, my daughter has lain here in her bed, too sick to speak.'

Ochu was taken aback. 'She's in the boat with our children. Come and look,' he pleaded. But the father sent his servant instead. When the servant returned excitedly to say, 'Yes, it's true,' the bewildered man went back to the sickbed of his silent daughter and told her the story.

Immediately the ill Sen-jo became filled with energy and rose from the bed without a word. She walked out of the house and down the road, followed by her father. As soon as she met the other Sen-jo and her children, the two embraced and instantly became one. Later the reunited Sen-jo said that all along, in both lives, she had had the feeling she was living in a dream.

When we are disconnected to parts of ourselves we live in a dreamworld, not fully engaged in present reality.

Best regards, Michael Grevis

Ed's note: Thanks Michael!

Metaphorical descriptions of symptoms / problems and scenarios tend to get laid bare while you offer the meaning of the symbols to your client. Trust that the client will make the association to the indirect message!

Allow me to tell you of the ancient monkey trap! An indirect tale for 'letting go'.

"There was once a certain tribe who were renowned for catching monkeys...now monkeys as you know, are very quick and highly intelligent. But they're very greedy too, and this is what the tribe realised when formulating their ideas to trap such smart animals. Now how they did this was at once both very interesting, and very simple too!

You see, they'd set upon a tree, a small woven basket, which had been tied securely to a branch. Now this basket was woven strongly and carefully, with a big bulbous round at the closed end, and a very narrow opening at the other.

Into this basket was put large chunks of the monkeys favorite food, and by this, the trap was set. In a short time, a monkey came along, saw the basket full of food, and simply stuck his hand in that basket, grasped the biggest piece of food, and at that very moment, the tribal men would leap from the hiding place and rush for the monkey.

Now the monkey was naturally shocked and alarmed at this sudden movement, and tried to withdraw its hand from the basket, while not wanting to relinquish its grip on its prize, but the monkey, for all his wisdom, didn't realise that by.... 'holding on'.... to the food, that his hand was now bigger than the opening in the basket.....so he pulled and pulled, screamed and cried, but his opened hand gripping that food was simply too big to be withdrawn.

Amidst the panic of the moment, the monkey was caught, and this, truthfully, is the ancient art of catching monkeys....... But you know, and I know, that if only that monkey had...."learned to let go of that which he clung too....he would have been free of his now self imposed burdens".....

So, in an indirect manner, I have told a tale with the message which states...."if you don't let go....you remain trapped" ....but without ever referencing anxiety. Perhaps you're attention was fully engaged while reading, and this is perhaps what a metaphor should do....engage the attention away from the problem with a tale/pun/anecdote, but at the same time offering truisms/suggestions/solutions for change.