“The fountainhead of love is within your own heart. Don’t look to others to provide the love you need. Don’t blame others for withholding their love from you. You don’t need their love. You need your love. Love is a gift you can give yourself. Give it to yourself and  the universe resounds with a big “Yes!” Withhold it and the game of hide-and-seek continues: “Looking for love in all the wrong places.”  page 192

“When you finally realize that no one else can redeem you or betray you, your relationship to other people changes profoundly. They simply become friends, neighbors, fellow-travelers. A new and healthy sense of boundaries is established in your relationships. You don’t blame others for your pain. You don’t try to make them responsible for your happiness. You become capable of being a friend and receiving the fruits of friendship from others. Others no longer have to be perfect in your eyes. You see their shortcomings and mistakes without judging them harshly. You see their beauty and integrity without needing to possess them.”  page 192

“All who seek the sky without getting roots in the earth will be beat up by their experiences. In time they will return, shovels in hand, and begin the work of planting. There are no wings without roots, except for birds. And they make sure they take shelter in trees with deep roots in the ground. All that is spinning out to heaven will fall to earth, abused, shattered and forsaken. That which is rootless will learn to grow roots. That which has sought authority without will learn to find it within. And then with feet firmly planted in the earth, the eyes will notice the procession of the sun and moon. The senses will feel the rise of the sap in the spring and the lifting of leaves in the fall. Blood and breath will be restored. Rhythm will return. Safety will be re-created where it authentically lies, in the heart of each person.”   page 193 & 194

Paul Ferrini, Reflections Of The Christ Mind, The Present – Day Teachings Of Jesus, Chapter: Learning to Care for Self.