Inspirational Quote
Someone once said that every man is trying to live up to his father’s expectations or make up for their father’s mistakes…
Barack Obama
A Depth Psychology Perspective
I decided to revisit this quote today because for the second day now, it haunts me. There is so much turmoil in this country that I cannot help but think, are we missing the very essence of what the former President of the United States is suggesting.
You cannot turn on a television or open a post on social media without being bombarded by the negative father’s imagery. Men, in general, are portrayed as aloof at best, part of a cold-spirited, emotionally unattached tyranny at worst, but in all circumstances, somehow inept. Why is this?
Maybe it touches upon the need for humanity to have a sacrificial lamb. Maybe we truly need a scapegoat so that the sins of our mistakes can be removed, or at least blamed upon something or someone else so we can escape the emotional and psychological scrutiny the mirror provides. But what’s even worse, look at the ever-evolving narcissism present in this day and age, a concept the mirror knows all too well from a first-hand nature.
The shadow is present. It has never left, even in the greatest of times. However, in the worst of times, humanity’s true tenacity is tested; this hopefully prepares the initiate for the very tasks needed to undertake the next journey.
The essence of the mistaken father is real. But as President Obama states, there is another father present, one that can set loving expectations, guide versus tyrannically enforcing a sense of moral obligation and values needed to nurture life forward in the presence of unity versus exclusion. Hope springs from this space of union. What waters can you add to this beautiful tapestry of life’s inner mystery?
Namaste my friends. May blessings find you on your road to advance confidently in the direction of your dreams.
Podcast
