Irvin Yalom

humans appear to be meaning-seeking creatures who have had the misfortune of being thrown into a world devoid of intrinsic meaning. One of our major tasks is to invent a meaning sturdy enough to support a life and to perform the tricky maneuver of denying our personal authorship of this meaning. Thus we conclude instead that it was “out there” waiting for us. Our ongoing search for substantial meaning systems often throws us into crises of meaning.

“So many rules. So many fixed family rules,” I mused. “You say you want things to change with your father? For that to happen, some family rules may have to be changed. What’s the risk in opening everything up for discussion—on the phone, in person, even via a letter?”

IN EACH OF these instances the advice I offered was not meant to be an end in itself but a means to encourage exploration