"There is a time for departure even when there's no certain
place to go." – Robert Frost
Over the last couple of weeks, these words have been
tumbling around in my mind like socks in a dryer. As a man of extremes, who
loves to travel, it's easy for me to jump quickly to the conclusion that the
quote is a challenge for me to quit my job and become a full-time traveling
teacher, journeying to all stretches of the planet.
One day that may well happen, but extreme thinking is often
an internal excuse for maintaining the status quo. The logistics of selling
everything and hitting the road is so overwhelming that I can just as quickly
dismiss the idea and go back to my comfortable existence. I'll mull over
Frost's words later when I have a better sense of how such a bold act would
unfold.
That absolves me from considering that maybe there's
another message in the quote, an invitation for me to depart from other
stations in my life that aren't as extreme - a toxic relationship, a bad living
situation, hanging on to lost dreams from the past.
However, doing so can be frightening when there's nothing
new to take their places, when there's "no certain place to go."
Fear is part of what holds us back, but I also believe that
we get sidetracked by looking for certainty before we act or, in my case,
looking for signs. It's been my experience that in the past when I came to
major crossroads in my life I seldom had obvious, Road to Emmaus type clarity but, instead, just rolled the dice and kept moving forward.
Since signs are often not forthcoming, we have yet another
convenient excuse to not act. We have the justification to remain in a familiar place.
Over the next few weeks, I'll continue to mull over
situations I need to leave behind in my life. Perhaps, it's a good exercise for
us all in this new year.
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