When we are young we feel that the path should be clear with no obstacles in our way. The only environment in the natural world where this would hold true is in an arid desert, devoid of all life. So the path disappears again and again from view. There will be many times when we simply do not know how to proceed, where to go. Again, these are the times when we push through despite the fact that we do not know where the path will lead us. These are the times on the journey of life where all we can reasonably do is to simply stand in the ground of our own life, our own being, without trying to abstract ourselves into a strategic future so that we don’t have to deal with the heartbreak of our lives; a vain attempt to escape the reality of our life. Life is complex. Each of us must make his or her own path through life. There are no self-help manuals, no formulas, no easy answers. The right road for one is the wrong road for another. The journey of life is not paved with blacktop; it is not brightly lit and it has no road signs. It is a rocky path through the wilderness. But, if we know exactly where we are going, exactly how to get there, and exactly what we’ll see along the way, we won’t learn anything.
And as we get older, there comes a point in our lives when all we can reasonably do is simply stop and stand where we are and realise that we, ourselves, are the journey- that the mere fact that we sought a path, a way through the darkness is enough. There is beauty and courage in that; the fact that we tried to seek a way through the wilderness. The most important lesson here is that the journey or path, itself, is really the goal- not some faraway abstract destination in the remote future or lofty ideas of becoming ‘enlightened’.
When we are young we feel that the path should be clear with no obstacles in our way. The only environment in the natural world where this would hold true is in an arid desert, devoid of all life. So the path disappears again and again from view. There will be many times when we simply do not know how to proceed, where to go. Again, these are the times when we push through despite the fact that we do not know where the path will lead us. These are the times on the journey of life where all we can reasonably do is to simply stand in the ground of our own life, our own being, without trying to abstract ourselves into a strategic future so that we don’t have to deal with the heartbreak of our lives; a vain attempt to escape the reality of our life. Life is complex. Each of us must make his or her own path through life. There are no self-help manuals, no formulas, no easy answers. The right road for one is the wrong road for another. The journey of life is not paved with blacktop; it is not brightly lit and it has no road signs. It is a rocky path through the wilderness. But, if we know exactly where we are going, exactly how to get there, and exactly what we’ll see along the way, we won’t learn anything.
And as we get older, there comes a point in our lives when all we can reasonably do is simply stop and stand where we are and realise that we, ourselves, are the journey- that the mere fact that we sought a path, a way through the darkness is enough. There is beauty and courage in that; the fact that we tried to seek a way through the wilderness. The most important lesson here is that the journey or path, itself, is really the goal- not some faraway abstract destination in the remote future or lofty ideas of becoming ‘enlightened’.