BUILDING A COMMUNITY…
TWENTIES GROUP
Tonight at 8pm Central with me over Google Hangouts. Message me for more information.
Let’s F’ing Process,
-Duane
1. Stop fantasising: Those with too rosy a picture of the future tend to put less effort into reaching their goals. Instead, it’s better to be open to some things going wrong. It will help you see the obstacles - and think through beating them.
2. Visualise process NOT outcome: If…
COMING SEPTEMBER 2013…
Offering “Online Coaching” on a donation/sliding scale. How can I support you? Let’s talk.
-Duane
A NOTE TO ‘EARLY TWENTIES’ DUANE
Dear Duane,
I’ll get down to brass tacks - you’re scared. You are depressed. You are unhappy with where you are. You mask this very well by being the “fun guy” and drinking until the early morning. You drink heavily because the truth of the matter is, you don’t like how your life is being played out. You hide/avoid your pain by drinking a case of beer a night. You blame others around you for your current situation and you blame yourself. It’s hard for you to look in the mirror.
I say this not to be mean but to say that you need to go through this. You need to experience this pain because this is setting you up for an even bigger comeback. You haven’t made the distinction of “creating a life” for yourself so you are trying to make sense of it the best that you can. You’ll come to a point where you’ll ask for help and realize that the right people have always been there for you…all you have to do is ask. You will soon realize that you were not meant to go through this alone and you have the right to CHOOSE to BE any way you want to be. You’ll soon discover your ‘purpose’…not based on anyone else or a ‘higher calling’ but because you will choose to be committed to it. You’ll go from feeling ‘homeless’ to feeling loved. Have faith because your experience will lead you to changing your mindset from ‘what can I get from life?’ to “How can I make a difference?”.
Dream out loud. Exercise those muscles. Keep leaning forward. Things are much brighter on this end.
-You
TWENTIES GROUP tomorrow over Google Hangouts at 8pm Central Standard. Bring your story, bring your gifts. Message me if you want in.
FEEDBACK
More times than not, I doubt my ability to be an effective therapist. This isn’t necessarily a “bad” thing as I believe the best therapists are always questioning their abilities, competence, and continually striving for that “extra inch”. I recently received this letter from a client…
“In the seven months I’ve been using the Center’s services, I’ve learned a lot about myself. When I first came in, I was a sad, broken, and hurt person. I also didn’t know how to deal with problems alone. I let go of all my problems with the help of Duane, and I also learned how to find the positive in myself and in others. Through Duane I was able to express my thoughts, and I was even able to see the progress in myself. Working with Duane has been a pleasure, and I’m happy that I made the decision to walk in and seek help for myself that one September day…”
My therapeutic approach is to remind others of their own greatness…Once again it is the client who reminded me of my own.
Thanks for this, keep leaning forward, I’m glad you “let go”,
Duane
“GARDENY” - Thank you Michigan for your hospitality and your beautiful starry nights. It’s always nice to return ‘home’ to reflect on what I’ve planted this year. Back to creating my life. Back to Chicago.
Time to Forgive. Time to Live. Time to Love.
Your story goes on,
-@enjoyduane
Frank Capra said “Film is a disease”.
He went on, but that’s enough for now. I caught the disease early on. I used to feel it. And they used to take me to the movies all the time. I used to feel it whenever we walked up to the ticket booth with my mother, my father, my brother. You’d go through the doors, on the thick carpet, to - past the popcorn stand that had that wonderful smell - then to the ticket taker, and then sometimes they’d get - these doors would open in the back and there were little windows in it in some of the old theaters and I could see something magical happening up there on the screen, something special. And as we entered, for me I think now, it was like entering a sacred space, a kind of a sanctuary where the living world around me seemed to be recreated and played out.
What was it about cinema? What was so special about it? I mean I think I’ve discovered some of those - some of my own answers to that question a little bit at a time over the years.
First of all, there’s light. Light is at the beginning of cinema, of course. It’s fundamental - because it’s created with light, and it’s still best seen projected in dark rooms where it’s the only source of light. But light is also at the beginning of everything. Most creation myths start with darkness, and then the real beginning comes with light - which means the creation of forms. Which leads to distinguishing one thing from another, and ourselves from the rest of the world. Recognizing patterns, similarities, differences, naming things - interpreting the world. Metaphors - seeing one thing in light of something else. Becoming enlightened. So light is at the core of who we are and how we understand ourselves.
”Martin Scorsese, “Persistence of Vision: Reading the Language of Cinema”
(2013 National Endowment for the Humanities’ Jefferson Lecture, live at the Kennedy Center)
