Back in May of this year I drafted and published a blog post honouring the life of holistic therapist Dick Sutphen, who’d passed away in September, 2020. Such had been his contribution to my own well-being that, on learning of his passing, I’d been moved to write a few words in recognition of the fact.
Since that time, I’ve been amazed at the level of traffic that modest May post has consistently attracted. Barely a day goes by without at least one visitor to that page. This has been extremely rewarding on several levels. Whilst it’s fair to say that writers scribble away in the hope that others will read the output and enjoy it, my satisfaction at the sustained interest in Dick Sutphen 1937 – 2020 is compounded as I consider the man to be fully deserving of the solid interest and respect such traffic suggests.
On embarking upon my early morning dog-walking exercise, it’s not unusual for me to select therapeutic music or meditative narratives to accompany me on the trail. This morning my selection was one of Sutphen’s.
I hadn’t considered myself to be in need of the message within that particular recording, but I guess my subconscious knew differently, for I was directed to choose ‘Confidence and Positive Thinking‘, a mind programming meditation which, for reasons that I explain in my May post, has been invaluable to me over the years.
The recording contains several techniques to imprint the mind with the appropriate message made clear in the title. Such tools include recurrent suggestions, visualisations and symbol therapy. One track in particular, entitled ‘The Messenger‘ has long had a fundamental impact on how I view the world and relationships.
During the track, the listener is first of all asked to envisage being in bed at home. A visitor appears and proceeds to offer ‘eight important suggestions to help you be positive and confident.‘ The suggestions are these:
Be aware that life is a self-fulfilling prophecy. You’re creating your future right now, and it all begins with your thoughts, which in turn become expressed as your words and deeds. Think lots of positive thoughts and imagine wonderful, positive futures.
Understand that reality exists as that which you experience. The way you experience life is based solely on the way you decide to view what happens to you. Your viewpoint is the deciding factor on whether you view life harmoniously or hostilely.
Be who you really are. When you remove your fear pretences and expand yourself it increases self-esteem and generates self-confidence.
Accept that what is, is. In other words, accept the things you cannot change, change the things you can, and have the wisdom to know the difference. Acceptance brings peace and helps you to view life positively.
Give up attempting to control other people in any way, shape or form. The only possible reason for you to be upset by another human being is because you didn’t get your way. In other words, you weren’t able to control the other person’s actions, or reactions to you. To avoid getting upset, accept that other people aren’t here on earth to do what you want them to do.
Remember, you always have the free will to choose how to react to any situation. If you value peace of mind and high self-esteem you will choose to react in a way that supports these values.
Never allow another person’s words or deeds to influence how you feel about yourself. One has nothing to do with the other.
Express your needs directly and honestly, without resentment or hostility. In so doing, you rise above the need to wear a social mask, and the resulting frustrations at suppressing who you really are.
Dick Sutphen – ‘Confidence and Positive Thinking’
Since discovering Sutphen in the late 80s, his brand of self-help meditations have been nothing less than life-changing. Should any of the above have aroused your curiosity to learn more, I recommend that you visit his website, which can be found at: https://www.dicksutphen.com
Pebble Pathway 