Create with Quiet Confidence

A woman expresses gratitude for the love in the room before revealing that when first attempting to speak, she experienced a visceral terror of being burned at the stake or considered insane for speaking her truth – despite having no personal history with such persecution. She compares this fear to how sharks can be trapped by an illusion of a wall created by air bubbles from a hose. Rupert reassures her that in our current culture, one need not fear being locked up for expressing unconventional ideas, though this might have been true in other times and places. Returning to her original question about creativity, she explains that unlike Rupert who seems to have had a ’well-worn path’ of creative expression throughout his life, she experiences a narrow capacity for creativity that she wishes to expand. Rupert encourages her to be quietly confident, start creating regardless of others’ opinions, and recognise that criticism and praise are inevitable companions to creative expression. He suggests using criticism as an opportunity to examine what in oneself feels diminished, since awareness itself is never affected by praise or blame. When the woman realises this approach opens creativity as a form of devotion, Rupert affirms this, advising that her desire to express gratitude should be stronger than her fear of criticism.

From event 09 - 16 March, 2025 Seven-Day Retreat at Mercy Center, 9–16 March 2025

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