How do you get off the merry-go-round?

[Guest guest]

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Terry: How do you get off the merry-go-round?

 

Stephen: We love watching movies at the theater and on television.

We love laughing and crying at the comedies and dramas, and getting

lost in the stories. And we enjoy riding on the merry-go-round of

emotion they elicit.

 

Think about your favorite movie and your favorite character in that

movie.

 

As you're watching the movie, you're able to enjoy the experience of

the central character. You experience the drama, the emotional

swings, the successes and failures of the star. You laugh, you cry,

you watch in suspense as the drama unfolds. You love it all - the

highs, the lows, the pleasure and the pain.

 

You're able to get lost in the story and enjoy it because you know

you are the watcher of the story, the witness of the unfolding

drama. You watch the central character act out his part and you go

along for the ride. You do not suffer as the story plays out,

because you know you are the watcher, not the star of the movie.

 

The thought-stories, mental dramas, and the merry-go-round of

emotions they evoke are not, by themselves, problematic, and do not

cause suffering.

 

If the stories playing out in your mind are causing you to suffer,

there must be a belief in the reality and substance of the central

character and star of the stories, Terry. There is a character in

your life called Terry, no doubt, but she and her stories are not a

problem.

 

You are the witness of Terry and her stories. You are the watcher,

the awareness of Terry and her stories. More accurately, you are the

watching, the witnessing of all the stories that come and go.

 

How do you get off the merry-go-round?

 

The key is to see clearly for yourself that what you are in essence

is that which is watching Terry and her story unfold. You are not

Terry. You are awareness. Can Terry and her story exist without you,

awareness, being there to witness her?

 

Trying to control Terry, and trying to manipulate her story so that

she'll be happy and at peace is the very cause of the suffering

you're trying to avoid! You are not the author of Terry's story.

Terry's story is not a problem: the good, the bad, the pleasure and

the pain - none of it is problematic.

 

If you find yourself suffering from the story, just notice the

awareness, notice yourself as consciousness. The stories may

continue playing in your mind, but eventually they become like

background noise and have no affect on your experience.

 

When you know yourself as pure awareness, the stories and the merry-

go-round of emotion do not cause suffering. In fact, they're a great

source of entertainment and enjoyment. The happiness, the sadness,

the pleasure and the pain: all are welcomed as you watch the most

exciting movie ever made - your own life story.

 

Stephen Wingate

http://livinginpeace-thenaturalstate.com/correspondence.htm

 

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