Alphabet of the Heart – C is for Cooperation

Inspired by my Heart and teenage boys who struggled with the rules and laws of society, I discovered what I now call…

My Finger Trap Theory of Life

….and other situations you may find yourself caught and stuck in.

This is a finger trap; you may have played with one as a child.

The finger trap represents any situation that a person might get “caught” in. This theory can be applied to many situations that a person may resist or struggle against. I have been using this metaphor with boys who are incarcerated for over 20 years.  As I applied the metaphor to other areas in my own life, I began to call it “My Finger Trap Theory of Life”.  It illustrates the power of cooperation and leads to freedom.

the beginning

The way it starts is….somehow…..you create, promote or allow yourself to be in the situation.
And then you find yourself in the trap. The finger-trap (the circumstance or system) does not care what you think about it.  It no longer matters “how” you got yourself into it; somehow you did. You need to find the way out of it feeling like a trap.

THE TRAP

It seems to be automatic or instinctive to struggle to pull your fingers out of the trap….

That is how the “trap” gets tighter….
the more you struggle, the tighter the trap gets.
And then we say things like….
This isn’t fair!
I don’t like this!
Life shouldn’t be like this!

They shouldn’t be able to do that to me!
Why me!
How dare they!
etc…..

THE WAY OUT…..

Life, the system you work in, the “game” you play in, the situation you find yourself in, the “trap” you find your self in…..

 are designed to function in a certain way by whomever or whatever created it or the culture that defines it.

It works… the way it was designed to work, like it or not.

If there are flaws in the system….that is still part of how it works.

STEPS TO GET OUT OF THE TRAP:

I accept that I am in this situation/program.

I observe and recognize the rules and design of the situation/program.

I relax and cooperate with the design.

I begin to understand the design and purpose.

I find points or places in the design to support myself.

I find the way out…and ease myself into freedom.

Cooperation is a key to the way out, a key to freedom and a lesson of the Heart.

Cooperation-FINGERTRAP-coloring page

I wish you a blessing of cooperation to find your way out of whatever trap you currently find yourself.

Life is full of them in many forms.

The blessings come from learning to cooperate with how it works.

Always follow your Heart in all ways