prophecy. Spirituality invites us to act in such a way as to bring forth the spiritual gifts of healing, reconciliation, forgiveness, blessings, and peace.

            When a person tells me that they have "depression" I usually ask them who told them so or what it is that makes them believe this is the case. They eventually respond with simple descriptions of their difficulties such as, "I have trouble getting up in the morning," "I don't know whether I can keep a job," "I worry too much about my kids," or "I feel heavy and slow." When I shift to these specifics of their day-to-day lives, I find that it is easier to come tip with some fresh ideas that might be useful, whereas a focus on an abstract concept like "depression," is less resourceful. It tends to explain why their life is miserable without giving a clue what might be done differently.

            We are too often stuck in seeing the world in only one way and forget that we can be led to different viewings. A wealthy oil baron once commissioned Picasso to paint a portrait of his wife. When the work was completed, the baron was shocked to see the image that had been created. "Why that looks nothing like my wife! You should have painted her the way she really is!" Picasso took a deep breath and said, "I'm not sure what that would be." Without hesitation, the oil baron pulled out his wallet and removed a photograph of his wife saying, "There, you see, this is a picture of how she really is!" Picasso, bending over, looked at it and replied, "She is rather small and flat, isn't she?"

            The great spiritual traditions have always taught that much of what we hold as true objective reality is but an illusion created by the hand that serves the eye beholding it. Drawing the world in terms of pathology sets us up to be held down in the darkness, unable to see the spiritual resources that surround us. I am not suggesting that people suffer only because they see themselves as suffering. What I'm saying is that there are many ways to relate to our suffering.

            We do not need to be less compassionate about suffering but become more compassionate and hopeful about the ways in which suffering can be a spiritual teacher. This is the awareness that psychology too often forgets. Seeing the psychopathologies of everyday life as conditions of spiritual dis-ease moves us to a higher ground where we may relate to them in a more transformative way.

            Each of us goes through the day proving to ourselves that life is exactly as we believe it to be. We punctuate the endless "cogitates" in such a way that we hear what we believe must be present. In this way, our beliefs are always kept true, even when they are not. For instance, if you rigorously demand that your spouse be more loving to you, then you may not believe that the forthcoming overtures of kindness are authentic. You may snap back with words like, "You're only giving me flowers because I asked you to, not because you really want to!" or "If you loved really loved me, I wouldn't have to question it." If you truly believe you are not loved, nothing anyone else does can prove otherwise.

            Everyday life is sprinkled with vicious circles that keep us locked into nonresourceful conduct. For deeply engrained pessimists, no data can shift them away from their darkened outlook. If it's sunny, they'll say, "But it won't last, or "It reminds me of how much I miss the sun whenever it rains." It is possible to release virtuous circles into our performance of everyday life. We can choose to enjoy the sun when it comes out. To such a person, both rain and sunshine ere embraced and celebrated, evil and good are accepted as teachers, and sickness and health are understood as guides to life.