A hole in the sidewalk (TFTD from Kirk Weisler)

I hope you realize that you are not as different from other people as you may feel.  As a psychologist, I have the unique opportunity to listen in as people share their private battles.  Although we often fight these battles in the lonely spaces of our own minds, we might be surprised to learn just how common our experience really is.  This brief passage captures it so well.

Autobiography in Five Short Chapters by Portia Nelson

I – I walk down the street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I fall in

I am lost…I am helpless

It isn’t my fault.

It takes forever to find a way out.

II – I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I pretend I don’t see it.

I fall in again.

I can’t believe I am in the same place.

But, it isn’t my fault.

It still takes a long time to get out.

III – I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I see it is there.

I still fall in…it’s a habit.

My eyes are open.

I know where I am.

It is my fault.

I get out immediately.

IV – I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I walk around it.

V – I walk down another street.

Which chapter are you on? ~   Paul H. Jenkins, Ph.D.