~ G.K. Chesterton
Surprise and Humor in SoulCollage®
An excerpt from SoulCollage® Evolving by Seena Frost
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Light Bearer
Kathleen Flynn
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Plato said that the beginning of philosophy is surprise; I would say in the same vein that the beginning of
transformation lies in surprise. This is because, despite the yearning of our Souls for change and growth, our Committee members [our common subpersonalities] generally work hard to maintain the
status quo rather than risk journeying down unknown paths. To really begin to move and grow, we usually must be surprised, and this requires a nudge or a push from the
Fool. He is the archetype of
Holy Interruption. Hopefully, his push for us can come in the form of humor, of playfulness, and of synchronicities, rather than in more shadowed interruptions. The creative right-brain activities of SoulCollage® are a perfect venue for a lighthearted entry by the Fool - if we can let ourselves relax and be surprised.
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| Seena Frost's Clown |
Twenty-five years ago I participated in...some clown workshops and developed two quite different clown personalities. Both were interrupters who delighted in surprising people. The first was an old lady clown names Ms. Ann Thrope. ...She made fun of what we therapists took so seriously in our work. People laughed at her and loved her. Less obviously, but truly, they were laughing at and loving themselves... These clowns were for me an entry to "the laughter at the heart of things," or to that real sense of humor that laughs at the lack of proportion (or Shadow) within one's self as well as in others. Both clowns were saying, "Why are you taking yourselves so seriously? Get over it! Come to the party."
Helen M. Luke, the Jungian scholar, has an essay called "The Laughter at the Heart of Things", and she writes:
We all laugh at the foibles around us, but those with a sense of humor do not laugh at a person; there is a simply a feeling of delight in the ridiculous wherever it is manifest, and such laughter does not condemn the other or one but simply enjoys the sudden recognition of the loss of proportion in all our human conflicts and contradictions. It is a healing, not a destructive thing - a delight in life, in its comedies and tragedies, its seriousness and absurdities...
Hints for making the Fool's entry more likely in your own SoulCollage® work, and how to bring it in when you share the process with others are:
- Have a multitude of images available. Images that have the power to surprise your intuition and unconscious are very unpredictable. And they are different for everyone.
- Stay as playful as you can. Let browsing for images be like a treasure hunt.
- Continue this playful spirit while you create your cards. The Fool may hand you an image that does not seem to make logical sense, and you will trust his guidance and reach for the scissors.
- Speak from the images - the most surprising part of SoulCollage®!
Enjoy reading Seena's delightful article "Humor and Your SoulCollage® Cards" and see examples of humor cards made by Facilitators.
Train as a SoulCollage® Facilitator with Seena Frost on May 4-6, 2012 at the Presentation Center, Los Gatos, CA (almost full) and on September 7-9, Santa Cruz, CA. See a full listing of all Trainings below.
