To explain that theory I am here in this sunny place, three thousand kilometers from home. I came voluntarily, but I would probably never have come, if it had not been for the continuing encouragement I received from colleagues, politicians, executives, and friends, who are already familiar with this theory and who urged me again and again to finally put it on paper. Year after year they all pushed in the same direction, but each from a different perspective. One person saw in this theory the possibility to survive in his busy daily life. Another saw possibilities for improving his managerial skills. Others still were thereby able to maintain their highest level as a singer, or ballet dancer, or athlete. The painter saw possibilities to give more depth to his work. The politician was less vulnerable to attacks. But the greatest pressure brought to bear came from my patients. Patients suffering rheumatoid arthritis, who had learned to control their pain and aggression. Patients with malignant tumors, who gained control of their tumors. Or who achieved a balance in their relationship with the tumor, which made things easier at the end. Still others, who learned how to handle a cold. And last but not least, from my colleagues, specialists from different disciplines and general practitioners, who taught their patients to fight pain with the help of some simple arithmetic, without immediately feeling the need to reach for medical remedies, which take away one’s independence.

The distant beach beckons. Diving for seashells, maybe some sailing? Going for a long walk in the sun. Being alone, without thoughts. It appeals to me, but I am tied to my chair. I have spent weeks preparing myself for this delivery. Now it has to come. All at once. I want to get out from under the heavy load I have placed on myself: to give form to those thoughts and feelings. It is difficult, looking for the right words to use with strangers, who have not asked any concrete questions. I think of the literature I have gone over once more. Of the thousand times I already explained and clarified everything. Of the amount of time I have invested in making the system watertight. Thoughts of Mariette and the children, who were left alone so often, because I had to work again. Of all those people who were dependent when they came to me, but whom I made independent, dependent only on themselves, and not on the doctor as is so often the case. Thoughts of all those cases coming to me over the years: backaches, stomachaches, and cancer in its final stages. I used the same system for all of them: only the language I used was different each time, adjusted to each person’s situation, his experiences, his life and his condition.