|
by Maureen Graves
As I begin
writing this I feel a connection to the many people around the world who
have been transformed by Virginia's teachings. The fact that seventeen
years after Virginia's death, thousands of people from every part of the
world are still seeking training in the Satir Model is evidence of her
brilliance and wisdom. Few have had that kind of global impact. I am aware daily of the gifts I received from my training with Virginia. She is often referred to as a pioneer in family therapy, which indeed she was, however to me she was much more than that. To me, she was a spiritual teacher. I believe this is why people often mistakenly referred to her work as magic or attributed her success with people to her charisma, and therefore thought others could not be taught to do the work that Virginia did.
What people were seeing, and experiencing was Virginia's connection to her soul, or as she called it to her wisdom.
Virginia's unwavering belief that everyone has a soul and therefore has all the wisdom and resources they will ever need to heal fna dgrow was what made her work so powerful. I will never forget her instructions on how to approach the first meeting with a client. I was expecting to hear certain questions we were suppose to ask in the first session or certain tools to use. Instead she spoke and role played how she connected with the person that she was meeting for the first time. She told us we needed to be aware that we were meeting a "treasure," a one of a kind unique treasure. Unlike the majority of professionals she did not view people from a pathological view or as a "a problem". Indeed Virginia did create many effective tools to help raise awareness in the people she worked with, however, it is my belief that you could learn her tools and become adept at using them but if you didn't have her view of people your success and effectiveness would not be nearly as powerful as it could be.
Virginia's belief and view of people not only changed my work, it changed my life forever. I can't think of anything in my life I am more grateful for.
Printed with permission from Maureen Graves, 2007.
|