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Turning Garbage
into Gold
by Michael Ruth
Everyone who has lived to see their adult years understands the truth of this statement
to one degree or another: "Life is filled with things we can do nothing about,
but that we must do something with." What everyone may NOT know, however, is
that these “bad experiences" -- what we refer to here as "garbage"
-- can be transformed into GOLD! Just as matter can change from one form to another
through the use of energy, we can take the raw material of those negative and haunting
memories of our past and transform them into treasures that will enhance and enrich
our lives, BUT ONLY if we understand and apply a few simple principles.
First, we must understand PERSONALITY. We each have a self and a story. In other
words, we have the genetic patterns that were derived from our parents, and we have
our experience, our past. These work hand in hand. For example, a person who is outgoing,
vivacious, and gregarious would not experience and process a situation like someone
who is introverted and quiet.
Secondly, we must understand the PROBLEM. This is a problem common to the human race,
because we do not live in a perfect world. As soon as we are able to pick up on feedback
in our environment, we begin to draw conclusions about ourselves and our world. Sometimes
these are positive, life-building messages but oftentimes these messages are negative.
Because we don't like to hear "bad" things about ourselves, we will attempt
to distance who we are from that part of our story.
The PROBLEM may also stem from a very devastating circumstance that occurred at some
point in our life, some traumatic event that was so overwhelming in nature that,
to be able to cope with it, we had to distance ourselves from it, to repress it,
hoping the pain would eventually be forgotten.
Here's a description of what that looks like. Picture a two-room house, with one
room directly on top of the other. They are identical in size, shape, structure,
etc., but the room on bottom is underground. In essence, all you see is the one above-ground
room, and it appears to be the whole house. The other room is just as much a part
of the house, but you just can't see it. We will call the top room the "living
room" (our presenting self, or the part of us we like) and the underground room
the basement (our hidden self, or the part of us we don't like). We paint, decorate,
furnish and clean the living room, to keep it looking presentable. When something
comes into the living room (our life) that we don't like, that is broken, that we
are ashamed of, or that we view as a negative, detrimental thing, we move the rug
to expose the trap door to the basement, sweep this negative "garbage"
down into the basement, close the trap door, and replace the rug. This is my attempt
to remove it from my "life."
This might work were it not for one small truth -- the basement is still half of
the house! In other words, these "bad experiences" that we have all had
are still very much a part of US! It is POSSIBLE to be “all here" if I am rejecting
part of either my self or my story! Besides, I will be chronically tired. Why? Considerable
energy is required to work against the continual leakage of odor into the living
room of a musty, neglected basement, especially when it is used only for a garbage
dump.
Thirdly, we must understand the PRINCIPLE of alchemy. Alchemy is a term used to describe
the transformation of base metals into precious metals...loosely, the transformation
of GARBAGE into GOLD! We can make the worthless valuable -- something we treasure
about ourselves and our story rather than something we despise and reject -- just
by applying the natural principle of alchemy!
Lastly, we must understand the PROCESS. An ancient Eastern text states, "If
you wish to rule, you must first serve," "the last shall be first,"
"to get you must give," and other such paradoxical statements. The same
process applies here. If there are things in our experience of life that we want
to get away from, the secret to dissolving its power is to move toward that thing,
to UNCOVER it rather than to cover it, to approach it rather than avoid it! I MUST
recognize it as part of who I am and embrace it as my friend!
Once we begin this process, we will be surprised to discover how our life is enhanced,
broadened, and deepened. We are actually becoming a more whole, more complete, more
multidimensional person as we move to put all these pieces of our self back together
again. We find inner peace, a greater energy and courage for life in this process.
There is valuable treasure -- GOLD -- to be found there for the one who will courageously
open the trap door and venture into the basement!
Dr. Michael Ruth is author of the book Shadow Work: A New Guide to Spiritual and
Psychological Growth, which offers further discussions on this topic. Order your
copy by calling toll-free 1 (877) 671-1212 or e-mail susan@growthresourcesonline.com.
Copyright (c) 2001 Michael Ruth
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