LAUSR

A young hunter, Narcissus by name, was walking in the woods where a young Nymph named Echo saw him. She was entranced by him, his handsome appearance and physique and followed him. Each time he called, ‘Who’s there?’ she would answer with his exact words. She eventually revealed herself and attempted to embrace him but he was repulsed by her words and her display of affection and pushed her away. She wandered in despair and died broken hearted. Nemesis, the goddess of retribution, was outraged by the spurning of Echo and caused him to pass by a pond where for the first time he saw himself clearly. He was transfixed by the beauty he saw in the pond, for he had never seen himself. He reached to bring the one beneath the waters to his embrace. Each time he touched the water the image disappeared. He waited and waited, day after day and night after night, for the beautiful one beneath the water to ascend from the pond to his embrace. He could see the face of beauty but he could not touch or embrace the object of his love. Slowly he forgot to eat and drink and slowly he saw no reason to live without the embrace of his love. He wasted away. Some say he wished himself dead because of unrequited love. No matter which, he died and where he died a small flower grew up bearing his name, Narcissus. Narcissus made four mistakes: 1 He was repulsed by the echoes of himself in another. He pushed away the real affection of another because of an echo of himself. 2 He did not realise that the image he had become entranced with was his own. He was not aware of himself enough to recognise that he was the one reflected in the pool. 3 He continued without learning that there would be no return of love from the image in the pool. He could not make the transition from self-preoccupation to self-awareness. 4 He failed to care for his own condition while waiting for the return of a non-existent love. He postponed the nourishment of himself for the love he sought returned. So it is in our clinical work that we may sometimes see something repulsive in another, an echo of ourselves. We may also see something irresistibly compelling, desirable, in those we treat. We may wait for them to return our care, our sacrifice, our admiration only to find each time that caring as we do in clinical work fails to provide the embrace and return of love we seek. We give the care we wish to receive, not that required for the patient’s need. If we do not make the transition from self-preoccupation to selfawareness we may neglect ourselves, seek the nurture and love from our patients that only others in our lives can provide and perish in despair that our patients do not give us what we need.