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The Dangerous Present: Bridging Past and Future (a Fictional Account of Two Moments in a Group)

227 Kennington Road, Kennington, Oxford OXI 5PG, UK

The great wave of the past continually crashes on to the shore of the future, and as men and women we live at that breaking point. In our work as group analysts, we work with theories that link the past to the future, exploring the histories of our patients for an understanding of the present in order to prepare for the future. But the present that we work with shifts as we speak. We cannot know at the beginning of a group session what will have occurred by the end. In this way our groups mirror the uncertainty and unpredictability of life, pushed forwards as they are by their histories into an unknown future. The present moment bridges the past and the future of the group as its life is enacted within its boundaries. What does it mean to group analysts to work continually at this cutting edge, this breaking point of the wave, amidst the force and the turbulence that can accompany it? Why do we take these risks?

Key Words: bridging • conductor • group • past and future • present

Group Analysis, Vol. 33, No. 2, 179-191 (2000)
DOI: 10.1177/05333160022077263


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