This session opened with Bartholomew inviting students to give themselves a special gift - the recognition that this present moment is perfect for receiving what enlightenment offers. He addressed the post-holiday emptiness that occurs when all external gifts have been opened and the question "Isn't there anything more?" naturally arises. Using this as a metaphor for the spiritual quest, he emphasized that what people truly seek cannot be found in external accumulation but only through awakening to what is perpetually present yet consistently overlooked.

Bartholomew introduced a vivid metaphor that had spontaneously arisen in Mary-Margaret's mind: being immersed in a magnificent lake of enlightened awareness while constantly distracted by a large, voracious crocodile. The lake represents the ever-present ocean of awakened consciousness that surrounds and supports everyone at all times, while the crocodile symbolizes the endless mental-emotional reactions that demand attention and create the illusion of separation from this natural state. The crocodile represents thoughts identified with the body, which generate emotions that are either pleasurable (creating grasping) or painful (creating aversion) - both of which pull attention away from the underlying bliss of pure awareness.

The teaching emphasized that enlightened beings have solved this dilemma not by killing or controlling the crocodile, but by recognizing its complete irrelevance. They understand that the crocodile consists of mental constructs that cannot actually harm what they truly are. Bartholomew challenged the fundamental identification with the physical body, pointing out that if students believe they are merely bodies, they are missing the entire point of spiritual work. He guided them through the recognition that with eyes closed and senses withdrawn, the body cannot actually be located - only imagined or conceptualized.

A crucial insight involved understanding that there is no separate "thinker" or "doer" inside consciousness - these are simply clusters of thoughts that activate the brain and body, creating the illusion of a separate self. Bartholomew encouraged students to investigate this directly by closing their eyes and looking for the actual entity that thinks thoughts or performs actions. This type of investigation reveals the vast emptiness or "no-thing-ness" from which all experience arises, pointing to the true nature of what they are beyond all mental constructs and bodily identification.

The session addressed common misconceptions about enlightenment, clarifying that awakened consciousness does not eliminate pain, suffering, illness, or other challenging experiences from life. Using examples like Christ and Ramana Maharshi, Bartholomew explained that enlightenment means the underlying state of awareness remains unchanged regardless of external circumstances. The bliss that characterizes awakened consciousness is not dependent on having everything go well in life, but rather represents the recognition of one's true nature as the vast awareness in which all experiences arise and pass away.

Practical instruction focused on learning to reverse the habitual direction of attention from constantly flowing outward through the senses toward turning inward to investigate the source of awareness itself. This involves using the same power that creates the external world to examine its own source, discovering that the one who seeks and what is being sought are identical. Bartholomew emphasized this is not about hours of formal meditation but about moment-to-moment practice of directing attention inward while continuing normal activities.

This teaching concluded with the recognition that this turning within represents "going home" to one's true nature, which can potentially happen instantly when the right conditions align. Bartholomew suggested that all spiritual seeking, reading, and listening serves to ripen students for that moment when they will completely believe and trust what is being pointed to, allowing them to ignore the crocodile entirely and rest in the ocean of awareness they have never actually left. The promise is that any love, pleasure, or satisfaction derived from external experiences pales in comparison to awakening to the God Self within, which represents everyone's natural birthright waiting to be claimed through this simple reversal of attention.