In their training, therapists learn that common sense is not always useful in counseling others. Human life is full of paradoxes and contradictions.

16. HEALING SOCIETIE’S SOUL

“A society is like a person. It has a special history, certain inclinations, fears, hopes, and habits. A culture can get depressed and harbor old angers. A society has a personal history that needs sorting and clearing out, and it can always use some good therapy.

Therapy does not have to take the form of conversation. It may involve painting a house, building good transportation, inviting fresh and useful businesses to a region. In the little New England town where I live there is a small group of businesspeople who are concerned about the future of the region and do everything they can to provide attractive buildings and a good economy for all. They work hard to keep the international chain stores at a distance from the town center, so that they don’t quash local initiatives. They bury cables and raise money for improvements. They keep up the beautiful old buildings and demand strict codes for new ones. They are the town’s therapists, and they take their calling seriously. I talk to these people, who have skills that I lack. I encourage them and try to give them some philosophical underpinning for their good work. I’m their therapist.

The root problem in society is an astounding degree of unconsciousness in dealings among people. Many act and speak from their deep needs, long- standing neurotic patterns and fears—with little or no awareness. You see this in shouting matches in which people hear nothing of what the other has to say. A community thrives on a spirit of cooperation and empathy, but often what you see is pure narcissism, self-interest, and gross immaturity.

Therapy is not all focused analysis. Once in a while I reach up to my bookshelf and read a quote or a poem that is relevant to what is being discussed. I may do this because I feel a constriction in our conversation. I feel we need a third voice to join us and allow us to look out further from our restricted space. It also models and teaches how good art and literature can be psychologically useful.