I also can relate with the constant looping self-talk keeping me stuck in place. I suspect that as a graduate in philosophy you might have a tendency to overthink things.

The story of Cinderella comes to mind as this is a story about what to do when your suck and experiencing the time of ashes.

In the story Cinderella has lost contact with her mother and father. As an archetypal inner energy the Father provides protection, guidance, discipline while the Mother our ability to nurture and love ourselves. (We all need to become our “own mother and father” and learn to nurture, guide and protect our authentic selves. This is one of the tasks of becoming.)

In the story Cinderella is stuck with the step mother (negative self-talk) and so not able to nurture her authentic self. Even her creative possibilities, what she felt were her gifts seem to work against the self and become un-relatable. (Step sisters)

It is during this time that the task is to take care of the daily jobs required, to tend the garden, take out the trash. To do what you need and have to do as best you avoiding the temptation to over think, measure the experiences.

This creates the space for what could be called the numinous movement, the invitation to the ball. The time where without our trying to control the situation we have the experience, the “magical” moment, were all ones experiences come together with purpose, a glimpse of possibilities and dancing with life once more.

Here there may be a temptation to hold fast to such experience, stay to long, recreate them… but that will just leave you stuck in other ways. Such experiences are not meant to last but light the fire of inspiration.

The numinous experience awakens the time for the inner “prince” archetype. The time of action to seek out a connection to ones being and doing, feeling and thinking nature.

In time of ashes the story advises, as does many wisdom traditions, that we spend time doing the jobs required of us. Perhaps the kind of meditation practice of washing dishes, sweeping floors… without thinking of doing other things. A focus on the tasks and needs at hand without measurements or judgments that so easily leads to the negative step mother self-talk.

Create the space for possibility and glimpse of what might be and the time to act, to seek out the connection between your feeling and thinking nature and see what new possibility might then be born. Allow it to happen and Trust.

We become the stories we tell ourselves, so write a good one.

Checkout Kathryn Craft the author of ‘The Art of Falling’ website, her journey of writing is interesting.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 2 months ago by Peter.