Roberta Chromey 
Dear readers and friends, This week’s post is a jubilant announcement that my Memoir is out! Real People: At the Pinnacle with Irmis Popoff and the Second Basic Course with J.G. Bennett, A Memoir, is now available on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Real-People-Pinnacle-Sherborne-Bennett/dp/1954744706 Real People Synopsis In today’s world of political and climate instability, Real People tells the story of … Read more
What does Gurdjieff mean when he talks about becoming a “real” human being? One of Bennett’s goals for students at Sherborne House was to learn how to work at becoming such a person. My wish to meet “real people” and be “real” myself drew me in part to Bennett’s ten-month residential course at Sherborne. But … Read more
Something extraordinary happened at the grocery store yesterday. As always, I started out in the vegetable and fruit aisle. It’s been a long time since I’ve witnessed a woman who did not know how to manage her children in public. But there she was, with two young daughters, perhaps six and nine. Her voice was … Read more
The space between remembering and forgetting, in Gurdjieff terminology, is usually supposed to be filled with “remembering oneself.” At least I thought so and worked at this for some twenty years at Claymont following my Sherborne course. One day I went to see Pierre Elliot, our teacher at Claymont. It was after a very intense … Read more
On Easter Sunday morning, the priest spoke about the blood and body of Christ being real. I heard him and knew that for him it was a big deal and the difference between Catholic and Protestant religions. The Catholics believe the host and wine turns into literal blood and flesh. The Protestants believe the communion … Read more
Law of Three Why is Denying Force holy? Gurdjieff teaches about the Law of Three, sometimes referring to it as Holy Affirming, Holy Denying, Holy Reconciling. Bennett, in Deeper Man, digs into the law as triads, breaking down and reconfiguring the interactions between Active, Passive (or receptive) and Reconciling forces. I’ve studied triads, experienced moments … Read more
This little light of mine, I’m gonna make it shine… The other day I caught myself wondering what earthly good my little inner-work efforts are, anyway? I see the suffering from war in Ukraine. I’m aware of the interwoven cultural-historical relationship between Russian and Ukraine, an obvious cause for anguish with many international families. Close … Read more
The reality of trying to line myself up on the fly to remember a specific inner task is this: It didn’t work but it gave an insight. Last week I wrote a high falutin’ blog piece about Feeling I; Sensing Am. Contemplating this post during my morning’s jog, I remembered the task I’d recently suggested, … Read more
“I” is a feeling, “Am” is a sensation in the I Am exercise as I’ve newly rediscovered. On our course at Sherborne I was introduced to stops during practical work. We would pause from our physical labor, be it gardening or construction or cutting wood, breath in “I” and exhale “Am.” I remember breathing in, centering … Read more
There’s a still, quiet, readiness I recognize from movements. It’s taken a long time to get there. Movements, Phase I When I was introduced to movements as a twenty year old, they were not that appealing to me. Too angular, too militaristic for my ballet influenced sensibilities. Then I experienced how they can change one’s … Read more