📅 Thought for today:
‘In so far as one denies what is, one is possessed by what is not, the compulsions, the fantasies, the terrors that flock to fill the void.’
— Ursula K. Le Guin
#thoughtfortoday #reality #fantasy #earthsea #terror #fears #void
Ursula Le Guin is described on Wikipedia as a writer of “speculative fiction”. Whilst her work is often described as science-fiction or fantasy-fiction there is a greater depth and breadth to her work than that.
I read her Earthsea trilogy when I was very impressionable, and so the work made a significant impression upon me. There is an echo of Earthsea that I hear occasionally.
I have wanted to use one of her quotes for a while, and this one popped up for me today. It just felt right.
Le Guin’s work was influenced by Carl Jung, just as my development as a therapist was influenced by “the greats” of psychology, psychiatry and psychotherapy.
Early in her career, she wrote about a school for Wizards – long before Harry Potter came to be. Her work has influenced a great many writers.
Back to this quote.
To my mind, this describes perfectly my experience with some clients, that for a variety of reasons they are unable to face the reality around them and replace it with what they fear the most or what they wish to be, or some other form of reality replacement.
For me, I have been facing up to the changes I have made and the impact that has on my relationships with family and friends. Some of it is strengthening and positive. Some of it isn’t. That is the reality I must face.
