Self, selving, and the education of attention

Movement that predicts an outcome is central to life and central to the self. Thinking ultimately represents directed movement. Self (an upper case noun) is an internal objective state, or fixed action pattern (FAP), while selving (a lower case verb) is a vital, purposefully moving, intricate felt process that lies at our psychic core. As illustrated through a case study, overly identifying with Self as one or many objective states will lead to repeating patterns that feel 'stuck' as a particular way of being in the world. It is through the appreciative SEEKING awareness of the intrinsic tension between these two opponent processors, Self and selving, that we nurture, in the words of Colwyn Trevarthen, "hopeful purposefulness." Graceful selving in embodied time, informing what we value, can be nourished through the artful and caring education of attention in a companionable relationship, such as between therapist and client.