One of the stages of grief is bargaining. It’s when, for example, someone is dying and s/he makes a bargain with God to live longer. It’s natural, in that sense, to want to get what we want through bargaining. But like all the other stages of grief, bargaining is also a stage of acceptance—a stage in which many of us get stuck for entire lifetimes. Bargains look like this: IF I THEN you’ll…. Or, IF you, THEN I’ll…. IF/THEN. That’s a bargain. But often these are bargains with the devil in which we sell our souls for a magic trick. IF I stay and become very loving, THEN he won’t hit m
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