healing all the time

wayne famously and repeatedly said that all of us, at all times, in some way are healing.

all of us at all times are searching for growth in some way.

in many myriad ways, each of us is healing and growing.

all the time.

i considered wayne my mentor. and i was his apprentice.

now i know that the wisdom he gifted me was that i am the apprentice of myself,

that i heal by way of my own empowered process of growth.

deep breaths.

you are deeply influential unto yourself.

continually discover and rediscover yourself, an exquisitely expansive

practice of unveiling your highest self.

the key to the shady trail is your attention.

under the shady umbrella of your own inner being, go in and apply this to yourself.

close your eyes.

To Our Friendship

No words I have can bring your presence back to earth. I am sad about this. As of lately I have been driving to the Chestnut Hill Quaker School to teach a class in communication. It is on Mermaid Lane very near where I used to go to see you, from time to time, through many years and tears of my life. I feel both a joy and a sadness when I arrive at the school. My aha! is that I miss you and the sound of your voice that was deep and warm, kind and understanding,reaching out to support and heal.

I realize you will always be there in my heart because although as colleagues we did not always agree, we did agree about the most important ingredient of life, "Love". Thank you for sharing your love with my son and me and so many others.

You were and will always be a special Friend that lives on in my heart.

Blessings to your beautiful family.
Dolly Mama

poets, artists, healers

i keep wayne's business card tucked inside the pages of "the wild braid" by stanley kunitz.

the poet was about 93 years old when he wrote the piece entitled "an incarnation", and i shared that book and passage with wayne about 2 years ago, when he phoned me and called me to his office in philadelphia. i had been living in nyc for 15 years and made the journey to chestnut hill 3 or 4 times a year for long sessions of therapy, mentoring and friendship. this was the only time in our 23 year history together that wayne requested a visit of me. of course, i knew about his long illness and the bouts with cancer as well as his remarkable and inspirational being during those events and remissions. this time he told me that he knew he was not going to be here very much longer. he estimated between a year and two. he generously poured himself in to our session that day, we cried frequently. once, upon hearing a loaded remark of mine around a love relationship i was in, stood his weakened frame up out of his familiar leather chair and at a very thin 6 foot 4 (at least), shouted and cursed in my defense, in fervent support of my very soul! i will never forget that image, the power in his voice or the depth of his love.

the following is a quote from kunitz that i hold honorifically as a torchlight to wayne's influence

on not only myself, which has been crucial, but to the world. you can put healer wherever it says poet or artist, as of course, they are synonymous.

"when an individual dies, the web connecting all life remains. it is reconstituted. the whole construct is renewed; the individual creatures who inhabit the web keep changing....

we forget that the human spirit is poured in to the art form, and becomes the electric center of that spirit among future populations. you can pick up a poem by keats of coleridge and sense the living vibration in the poem. that vibration can not be removed from the poem. it's a remarkable thing. absolutely remarkable....every time we read a poem from the past we resurrect the poet, so that he or she is a presence just as much as anyone living and that is miraculous in itself. any contribution to civilization is a contribution to immortality and that is why the explorers and the inventors, the artists and the political leaders who contribute to history, to the social structure, are really never gone. that's a most encouraging phenomenon."

nixa de bellis

aka barbara de bellis - "barbara, lovely barbara" is what wayne called me from the days of my youth, before i changed my name in '92...like a family member who knows your childhood and everything about you, i never wanted him to change that. i'll always answer to barbara from him or my sister, carole.

gems from wayne

i was cared for by wayne diamond for all of my adult life.

we had over twenty years of seasonal meetings.

like a banyan tree, wayne's teachings grew up and out,

only to go earthward again and root in the ground of potential

in the heart of his patients... and the blossoming up and out emerges

again and from another being, and on and on...

this tree must be continental now, one big banyan of healing jewels

from the brilliant mind and radiant heart of my friend, mentor, doctor,

healer and fellow human being, our beloved wayne.

the following gems remain with me:

"it would be much more LOVING to announce it."

"when you have been wounded, be conscious of what you can GIVE"

"staying connected in the context of emotional pain is the hallmark of INTIMACY"

"in the face of the reflex to run and hide, value CONNECTEDNESS"

"share your feelings with the person you're having feelings with"

"put love and self-respect in a stronger place than your fear of rejection"

"emotional healing is the only healing that is deep enough to get to the root"

Abundance

Wayne and I met during the last ten months of his life, and I believe that the work he did gave him a direction that was so strong it kept him going after many people would have given up hope. He had a way to quickly get to the bottom of a behavior, and then held you accountable for your behavior. At the same time, you knew he cared deeply about what was going on, and he expressed it. After his passing, I have learned much more about Dr Diamond thought my correspondence with Leslie and this Blog.
I have never heard anyone say before that a behavior will result in Scarcity, and what you really want is the opposite- Abundance. Wayne would repeat this theme, and in doing so shift the way that I was thinking about things. Here are my notes from our meeting.

Abundance turns negative weakness into something strong and workable, and people see value in everything I do.

Scarcity Versus Abundance

See in the world as a universe constricting versus a universe expanding.

Avoidance behavior versus facing fears and working out problems in context of relationship.

Fleeing from adversity versus having the ability to respond.

Being manipulative versus building trust and respect.
By Carl
-------------------------------
Leslie sent me these comments that Wayne had written:

The True Nature of Abundance

* True Abundance is having total faith in the future.
* Abundance is the ability to create, and sustain intimacy.
* Abundance is the self-respect that rises out of loving one's work, regardless if it becomes difficult.
* Abundance is the warmly unified set of feelings that is carried, following respectful, honest communication with someone of high regard.
* Most of all, Abundance is the wonderful experience of mutual love. This can come in many forms...a spouse, children, family members and friends. Be open to it!
* Abundance is the sheer joy of seeing, and hearing a child laugh.
* Abundance is the ability to enjoy and love animals.
* Abundance can be hearing, and seeing geese fly south for the winter, and the gentle longing of wanting to fly with them.
* Abundance is having hope for the future, after seeing buds on the trees - while there is still snow on the ground.
* Abundance is facing a powerful fear.
* Abundance is trusting intrusion, even if a reflex appears to second guess it.
* Abundance is learning something new about a person you deeply care about, when you thought there wasn't anything left to discover - when we are open, there is always something new to discover. Dr. Wayne C. Diamond

Kayann

I've worked with Dr. Diamond for over a year and during that time frame he has taught me the fundamentals of taking care of not only the physical aspects but the mental as well. Dr. Diamond was a blessing not only to me but my entire family. Words can not express the gratitude we have for his knowledge about the medical field and his sharing with me in regards to his own life experiences. My condolences and heart felt regards to his family.

My Brother Wayne

As I sat listening to Wayne's patients, friends and family speak of him at his Memorial Service, I came to realize just how very special my brother was to so many people. I sat listening to how Wayne helped, and in some instances saved some of the lives of the people that spoke that day.

My husband Joe and I sat in back of Wayne's grandson George Seth at the Memorial Service. We had a hard time controlling our tears because we saw G Seth weep several times thoughout the service. It was quite evident that he loved his Gampy very much. Wayne mentioned that he was so sad that he was not going to be here to see his grandchildren George Seth and Jordan grow up.

Wayne told me that he had no regrets in his life. He went on to say that he was "just sad" for many reasons that his life was ending too soon. Even though my brother Wayne is no longer here, he will live in the hearts of many.

Hankster

My name is Hank, and Wayne called me Hankster or Hammerin' Hank whenever we used to meet at his Chestnut Hill office. I was always greeted by Smuffy his sweet cat who always had a warm welcome and gentle nudge for me when I'd sit down in his comfortable chair. I'd patiently wait for Wayne do his thing in the bathroom, then he'd come out and sit down, and then the incredible inward journey would begin for both of us. I have such fond memories of our sessions even though some were quite painful and arduous, nevertheless they were necessary for a healthy emotional life for me. Wayne used to tell me that we'll all be dead for along time, so while we are here it's vital that we form healthy functional relationships. He would tell me many times ( I wouldn't mind his repetition), " there's nowhere to go with the people that we're trying to relate to if they hide out in their hurt,fear,sadness, and withhold their true feelings from us. That we must seek out those that have done the inner core work, and have worked on their family of origin issues,that are not hiding out their feelings, and that love their work." His work with me has saved my life in many ways. To be continued, and bless all of you for participating in this wonderful blog.

My Big Brother

My earliest memory of Wayne was learning of his bravery and willingness to see his new sister in the nursery of Hahnemann Hospital, soon after I was born. He snuck up several floors . Knowing that, has always made me feel special. I think Wayne has made everyone he dealt with, feel special in unique ways. I also saw Wayne as a "very smart guy", as he advised me of how to pursue going to college. I can honestly say that Wayne and I did not spend our lives being close, but we DID spend our lives with a certain connection that I will always cherish. Wayne has a legacy that will go on for many,many years yet to come, asnd knowing that gives me peace.

My last memory of Wayne was sayng "goodbye". I was in his room and he knew I was getting ready to leave. Wayne sat up in bed, looked at me and said, "Patti, you have a good journey home." "You have a good journey home too, Wayne" My reality says he did.

- Patti Bush

The Life I've Always Wanted

I have so much to share and remember about Dr D ( my nickname for him- he had plenty of nicknames for me so it's only fair). I woke up this morning in a beautiful hotel in Scottsdale, Arizona next to the most wonderful woman I've ever dated. I felt joy as I held her in my arms and watched the morning light up our room. I felt excited for the new day. I was grateful for the life that I now share with her- a life full of love and adventure. As I write this I am amazed at the total transformation in my life from the man I was in 2005 when I first started working with Dr D. I was cynical, lonely and depressed. I was working at a job I hated and living in a town where I had no friends at all. He never gave up on me- and believe me, I tested him more than once to see if he would. The only thing that could make this day any better would be if I was in my weekly session with Wayne- which would have started 4 minutes ago. I miss him. But, what he said has been true- that nothing could take away what we shared. I'm so grateful for the time I spent in session with him. I look forward to reading what others shared and writing more at a later date. Thank you.

My Sage

I just wanted to say that I would not have the thriving business or good health that I have today if it were not for Dr. Diamond. His advise on being a macro-manager instead of a micro-manager
helped me grow my biz and has made my people much happier. His constant encouragement
to "be excellent" was a great weekly shot-in-the-arm.

I am glad I got to say goodbye to him.

Love,

Tony

Let's Get Started

Hello friends. I wanted to get this started though it is still a work in progress. We are all eager to share thoughts and stories about Wayne. I still have plans to load audio and video but have not reached that point yet. If anyone has any other suggestions we would welcome your input.

Also, it would be a great help if anyone knows other patients or friends that I might not have reached yet, please send me their email addresses if they are interested in participating. This way I can send them an invitation as I have set the settings to private so they will need an invitation to be able to view and contribute to our blog.

Looking forward to your thoughts - Leslie Anne

"People need to trust in good times and tough times, where they are being led, even if it is frightening and unfamiliar. Trust the process, trust your instincts and when one accepts where one is being led in a loving way, then what will happen will be loving... ultimately." Dr. Wayne C. Diamond