Field Notes
by Dr. Avraham Cohen, PhD, RCC-ACS, CCC

I will start with a quote from my dad. As you know, I have on previous occasions shared my father’s words that in retrospect have turned out to be small wisdom sayings for me. Of course, I didn’t know when I first heard these utterings as a teenager, or even when I was a young man, that there was a profound value to his humorous expressions. Read Field Note

Perhaps you have heard the not too complementary joke about psychotherapists; that the reason they get into psychotherapy is to solve their own problems. Well, speaking for myself, I can say that this is absolutely 100% true! Furthermore, I think the world would be a better place, if more people would take this approach: namely, seriously taking up studies and practices to resolve their own issues and become more of who they truly and authentically are. We do not have to look very far to see that most of the people we know, and particularly those in leadership positions at all levels, to realize that the way they are dealing with the world and handling (or mishandling or ignoring) problems in the world seems to be an outcome of their own unresolved problems, and is decidedly outwardly focused. Read Field Note

Hello everyone! I am now back from my annual two-month summer retreat/break. This particular break emerged differently for me than most previous ones, and which I will share about in the present Field Note. As well, this Field Note will likely come across as somewhat more philosophical than usual. Read Field Note

There is a tendency in the way we humans think that if something didn’t happen to us as we were growing up, that’s not as bad as something negative that happened to us. In this Field Note, I intend to show that such may not be the case, and in some very important ways. As you listen and/or read this Field Note, I think it is very likely you will find some resonances with what I share with you. I am going to share a narrative dialogue between myself and a ‘composite’ person who is an assembly of my own experiences, as well as being based on my work with many clients over the years. Read Field Note

In this Field Note I believe you will find ideas and practices that will take you into the realm of expanded consciousness, and that you will discover some ways to research and experiment with your life and consciousness, beyond the realms of suffering and pain. “Suffering and pain” is a big territory that includes frustration, annoyance, anxiety, boredom, meaninglessness, fear and so on. I will not go over the ground that I have covered previously about inner work with your egoic structures that limit your ability to be fluid and flexible, uncovering and working with your edges, transcending those edges, and moving increasingly into realms of expanded awareness and experiencing of life. For sure that was the core and underlying work that builds the foundation for what I will offer you in this field note as practice. Read Field Note

The famous TV science fiction series, Star Trek: The Final Frontier, has a well-known line as part of the introduction to each episode, which is part of the mission statement of the Starship Enterprise, “. . . to go where no man has gone before . . ..”  (Of course, today, we need to say, “. . . to go where no humans have gone before . . ..”)  As a psychotherapist, whenever I hear that phrasing, I think of such intrepid journey of exploration and discovery taking place in the inner and relational worlds. Read Field Note

Just above is the recording for this Field Note for April 1, 2021, Disappointment (continued). If you want an opportunity to hear the Note that precedes this current one, you can listen to the audio file just below… Having lived long enough and seen enough in my personal and professional life, I would readily give myself to the view that most humans experience disappointment in and with life. Of course, some more acutely (as misery and suffering) than others (as dissatisfaction, discontent, and unhappiness). I am not alone in this view. Read Field Note

Disappointment is so pervasive that we might as well equate life, as experienced by humans, with disappointment. At least, that’s a tempting impulse, and I confess that I feel it intensely every now and then. We all hope that the degree of disappointment is not so devastating as to hollow out and crush us with a catastrophic implosion or explosion. Read Field Note

As you may be aware, Heesoon reviews the Field Notes before they are published and contributes editing and ideas. Upon reading some of her comments for my initial draft of this Field Note, I felt inspired, thought that this would be a good opportunity for a dialogue between her and me, which is what follows here. And you, too, are invited to participate in this dialogue. So, feel free to pick up at any point and share with us your comments, thoughts, ideas, experiences, and questions. Read Field Note

This Field Note is really about getting to know in a much more detailed and intimate way your sub-identities, and their great potentials. I recommend two approaches to this ‘getting to know’ project: 1) by observing with your consciousness; namely using your awareness in ways that are increasingly skilful; 2) by identifying with the identity: that is, knowing it by getting inside of it. In common language, owning it. Read Field Note