12-18-2013, 12:00 AM
~It is tradition that with the coming of a New Year we create
in our minds a cross-road of introspection between the past and the
future.
It is therefore common that we reflect upon the unaccomplished resolutions to
which we committed last year, and without greater self-analysis call ourselves
`flakey' and `undisciplined' and continue to declare new resolutions for the
following year, resolutions that will similarly remain unattained.
It seems we can thus pass an entire lifetime without losing the weight we want
to lose, without learning the new ‘latest and greatest’ we wish to learn,
without playing the instrument of our dreams, without spending more time with
our families, etc.
As an existential strategist or simple friend I often find myself engaging
individuals who, year after year, have seen their lives go by and (now
desperate) wish me to rescue them with a few chosen words of solace or
inspiration. Nowadays I dare not post about any matters here due to
the fact that I’m swamped with questions; actually they are looking for instant
solutions. This is frequently when I offer my "Silver Bullet" talk,
which goes something like this:
The European Medieval tradition relates that a gunshot with a silver bullet is
the most certain and reliable method of killing a lycanthrope, that is, a
`werewolf,' that diabolic figure that for centuries terrorized the existence of
a superstitious people who believed in supernatural beings and therefore in
magical solutions that would end the same.
For most of us the days have passed in which we feared werewolves, placed
gargoyles on our rooftops to ward off evil spirits, and lined the entrances of
our homes with rings of garlic to fend off vampires. Nonetheless, the
concept of a `silver bullet' as a metaphor for a quick, effective, and
effortless solution to a challenging and resilient problem remains.
Logically the expression is often applied with skepticism, sarcasm, and
irony: although it is common that problems manifest that are as gloomy
and overwhelming as werewolves,' rarely do they present with `silver bullets'
as solutions.
Nevertheless, in today's world this is what people seek most: an immediate
solution with a minimum amount of inconvenience.
We want to lose weight but continue eating sweets, drinking beer, ingesting
fats, and only exercising from the couch to the bed, from the bed to the table,
from the table to the car, from the car to the office, and from the office to
the couch.
We want our relationships with our significant others to improve, but without
self-compromise and only as a result of indicating the improprieties and defects
our partner exhibits as prerequisites to our relational bliss.
We want our youth to stop taking drugs, but without our having to stop
consuming alcohol or nicotine, which constitute, by far, the two drugs that
cause the most social and economic damage.
We want our societies to be safer, cleaner, more prosperous, even more
beautiful, but we continue to delegate our civic duty to a class of
professional politicians who year after year deceive us with words only to
later disappoint us with deeds.
We want to understand the self, personal power, ego, power, personal history
and self importance, yet provide only a fleeting ‘goings over’ of attention to
The Work that assists in this understanding.
In short: We want the silver bullet that kills the `werewolves' of our
existence and that changes our lives, our relationships, and our circumstances
but without the effort of changing our own perspectives, attitudes, and
behaviors.
During these days of festivities, celebrations, promises and reflections, take
a few moments to contemplate upon your lives, your families, your
neighborhoods, your societies and countries, and if you find defects and
problems therein, think about the following: If you are not part of
the solution you are the problem; and when you search for `silver bullets' to
solve your problems know that you do not have to look beyond yourselves to find
the werewolves that terrorize your own existence.
in our minds a cross-road of introspection between the past and the
future.
It is therefore common that we reflect upon the unaccomplished resolutions to
which we committed last year, and without greater self-analysis call ourselves
`flakey' and `undisciplined' and continue to declare new resolutions for the
following year, resolutions that will similarly remain unattained.
It seems we can thus pass an entire lifetime without losing the weight we want
to lose, without learning the new ‘latest and greatest’ we wish to learn,
without playing the instrument of our dreams, without spending more time with
our families, etc.
As an existential strategist or simple friend I often find myself engaging
individuals who, year after year, have seen their lives go by and (now
desperate) wish me to rescue them with a few chosen words of solace or
inspiration. Nowadays I dare not post about any matters here due to
the fact that I’m swamped with questions; actually they are looking for instant
solutions. This is frequently when I offer my "Silver Bullet" talk,
which goes something like this:
The European Medieval tradition relates that a gunshot with a silver bullet is
the most certain and reliable method of killing a lycanthrope, that is, a
`werewolf,' that diabolic figure that for centuries terrorized the existence of
a superstitious people who believed in supernatural beings and therefore in
magical solutions that would end the same.
For most of us the days have passed in which we feared werewolves, placed
gargoyles on our rooftops to ward off evil spirits, and lined the entrances of
our homes with rings of garlic to fend off vampires. Nonetheless, the
concept of a `silver bullet' as a metaphor for a quick, effective, and
effortless solution to a challenging and resilient problem remains.
Logically the expression is often applied with skepticism, sarcasm, and
irony: although it is common that problems manifest that are as gloomy
and overwhelming as werewolves,' rarely do they present with `silver bullets'
as solutions.
Nevertheless, in today's world this is what people seek most: an immediate
solution with a minimum amount of inconvenience.
We want to lose weight but continue eating sweets, drinking beer, ingesting
fats, and only exercising from the couch to the bed, from the bed to the table,
from the table to the car, from the car to the office, and from the office to
the couch.
We want our relationships with our significant others to improve, but without
self-compromise and only as a result of indicating the improprieties and defects
our partner exhibits as prerequisites to our relational bliss.
We want our youth to stop taking drugs, but without our having to stop
consuming alcohol or nicotine, which constitute, by far, the two drugs that
cause the most social and economic damage.
We want our societies to be safer, cleaner, more prosperous, even more
beautiful, but we continue to delegate our civic duty to a class of
professional politicians who year after year deceive us with words only to
later disappoint us with deeds.
We want to understand the self, personal power, ego, power, personal history
and self importance, yet provide only a fleeting ‘goings over’ of attention to
The Work that assists in this understanding.
In short: We want the silver bullet that kills the `werewolves' of our
existence and that changes our lives, our relationships, and our circumstances
but without the effort of changing our own perspectives, attitudes, and
behaviors.
During these days of festivities, celebrations, promises and reflections, take
a few moments to contemplate upon your lives, your families, your
neighborhoods, your societies and countries, and if you find defects and
problems therein, think about the following: If you are not part of
the solution you are the problem; and when you search for `silver bullets' to
solve your problems know that you do not have to look beyond yourselves to find
the werewolves that terrorize your own existence.